KARACHI: The first of the two special Eid trains being run by Pakistan Railways ahead of Eidul Fitr departed from the City Railway Station here at 2.30pm on Friday.

The train, carrying 1,078 passengers in 14 economy class coaches, is said to reach its final stop, Peshawar, in about 32 hours and 30 minutes. It will be making some 30 stops on the way.

After Karachi, it will make stops at Hyderabad, Nawabshah, Rohri, Khanpur, Bahawalpur, Multan, Khanewal, Shorkot Cantt, Toba Tek Singh, Gojra, Faisalabad, Chak Jhumra, Chiniot, Chanab Nagar, Shaheenabad, Sargodha, Malikwal, Mandi Bhahauddin, Lala Musa, Jhehlum, Rawalpindi, Taxila Cantt, Attock City and Nowshera to reach Peshawar around 11pm on Saturday.

Family reunions

Siblings Ayesha, Ibrahim and Rahim along with cousin Shaaf were happily enjoying the view outside from their coach windows. They were going to spend Eid with their grandmother in Multan. “And after Eid, we will bring her back with us to Karachi,” announced Ibrahim.

PR official says railways accommodate every year people who want to be home with their families for Eid

Their mother, Kundan, said that the grandmother had proceeded to Multan much before the rest of the family and that they were going to follow her now because of the children’s school.

“Besides taking the children’s Eid clothes with us, we have also packed their grandmother’s Eid clothes,” she said.

Meanwhile, Honey, another young man was heading to Bahawalpur for Eid to also spend some quality time with his grandmother.

“I was in Karachi to spend Ramazan with my maternal grandmother and now I am going to Bahawalpur to spend Eid with my paternal grandmother,” he happily informed.

One passenger, Ashfaq Ahmed, heading to Rohri said that he was happy with the fare. “I’m paying Rs600. By bus, the fare was much more at Rs2,000,” he said.

Mixed sentiments on fare

Another passenger said that he was glad that his father, Ghulam Rasool, was facilitated by Pakistan Railways due to his age. “My father is 74 years old. When I was getting a ticket to Khanpur for him, I obviously produced his CNIC and noticing that he was a senior citizen, the Railways only charged him Rs700. Otherwise the regular fare for Khanpur is exactly the double of that,” the son shared.

But there was also Hafiz Abdul Majeed, who felt that his fare of Rs1,800 for Multan was too high.

“I’m a maulvi and I had travelled to Karachi to volunteer help with Taraveeh prayers during Ramazan at Darul Uloom. Now I’m going back home and find this train too expensive. I think it would have been cheaper by bus but I’m taking the train because I don’t want to be getting on and off the bus for eating or using the bathroom,” he said.

“I’m here to see off my sister. She came down from Bahawalpur to Karachi a few days back on the Shalimar Express to attend our brother’s funeral. Then she paid Rs1,300 as fare. Now going back she had to pay Rs1,650 as the fare. Everyone on this Special Eid Train is not going home happy to spend Eid with family. There are also people like us,” said Mrs Asif.

The people getting on the train had all kinds of luggage, suitcases, handbags and even plastic bags full of clothes and gifts.

Arshad Khan, who was heading to Peshawar, had all kinds. And he was squatting on the platform for a breather with his luggage lying all around him.

“It’s just too hot. I only hope that the fans on the train are working,” he said. Asked what he was doing in Karachi, he replied that he runs an ice factory here. That’s when someone jokingly asked him if had packed some ice in his luggage too, making everyone forget the heat for a bit and laugh.

Second special train to depart today

While speaking to the media ahead of the train’s departure, Pakistan Railways’ Divisional Superintendent-Karachi Kashif Rasheed Yousufani said the Eid trains are added to the regular trains every year in order to facilitate and accommodate the extra rush of people who want to travel to different cities to be home with their families for Eid.

“For this we bring into use all the extra coaches that we can find to put together the Eid trains,” he said.

To a question regarding the functionality of bathrooms and the working of lights and fans in these extra coaches along with security, he said that they have made sure of providing all basic facilities to the passengers.

The second of the two Eid trains will depart from the Cantonment Railway Station for Lahore at 7.45pm on Saturday (April 30). It will include 10 economy class coaches along with two air-conditioned business class coaches and two air-conditioned standard coaches.

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2022