RAWALPINDI:
Pakistan Railways is unlikely to operate special trains for Eidul Fitr this year due to a severe financial crisis, officials said, with no published timetable and no bookings yet to begin, although the festival is just days away.
Railway authorities traditionally run special trains and offer discounted tickets during Eid to make it easier for passengers to travel to their hometowns.
However, officials at the Rawalpindi Railway Reservation Office said no instructions have been received so far regarding special Eid services.
“With just five days to go before Eid, no timetable for Eid special trains has been released and no reservations are being made,” an official said, indicating that operation of such trains now seems unlikely.
To cope with the expected influx of passengers during Eid, PR had earlier proposed attaching additional coaches to regular trains running on key routes including Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Lahore, Karachi and Quetta.
However, the proposal became controversial after the relevant authorities rejected it, arguing that even the regular trains currently operating do not have their full complement of coaches.
“If the trains already in circulation do not operate with their normal number of cars, how can additional cars be organized?” a manager was reportedly questioned.
Officials at the office of the Divisional Superintendent of Railways in Rawalpindi said a final decision regarding both the operation of the Eid special trains and the addition of additional coaches would be taken on Monday (March 16).
The announcement is expected to determine whether Pakistan Railways can provide additional travel capacity to passengers during the upcoming Eid holidays.
