July 23, 2006	Sunday	Jumadi-ul-Sani 26, 1427

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HYDERABAD, July 22: About 28 Indian and Pakistani passengers were offloaded from Thar Express at the Hyderabad railway station on Friday night because they had boarded the train from Karachi without reservation of seats.

Only the names of Abdul Rehman and his family (a Pakistani) and Mohammad Younus and his five member family (an Indian) could be ascertained.

Other passengers left the railway station to avoid further inconvenience and embarrassment.

Divisional Commercial Officer Hassan Tahir Bukhari, who boarded the train from Karachi for Zero Point, told Dawn that he found 11 people without reservation of seats and they included women and children as well.

The number rose to 28 when officials of the Pakistan Railways carried out further checking.

Mohammad Younus, who was travelling with his five member family, was screaming and weeping before the DCO saying that he should be allowed to board the train because his visa would expire on July 24.

Mr Bukhari did not listen to him saying that it was not possible for him to allow travelling without reservation of seats.

He said that according to government’s policy only passengers possessing reservation of seats were to be permitted in the train.

Abdul Rehman was offloaded along with his wife and children. He returned to his relatives in Kotri.

He said that other family members had also boarded the train on reservation booked in the name of other passengers.

“I will have to pay money for getting my visa extended and I do not have as much money. And there is huge rush of people at the city railway station for getting reservation of seats”, he said.

Pakistani hosts who were present at the railway station said that they were not getting tickets for another three weeks for their Indian relatives and guests because they were already booked.

They said that since only 72 passengers were to be accommodated from Hyderabad so only a limited number of people had been given reservation of seats.

Meanwhile, the railway authorities have reversed their decision of charging for every kilogram of luggage from passengers.

Last week the passengers had accused the railway authorities of charging them exorbitantly for luggage they were carrying to India and denying them concession of 40 kilogram of free luggage which is permissible under rules.

Those who travelled in last week’s train had paid Rs13.50 for every one kilogram of luggage including commercial and non-commercial items.

They insisted that 40 kilogram was exempted from levy of tax while additional weight was to be charged at Rs2 per kilogram and the practice had been in vogue at Wahga.

On Friday night, however passengers paid Rs2 per kilogram.

“We have been asked not to charge for every kilogram of weight at Rs13.50 per kilogram.

“We ourselves had opposed the directive but in vain.

“Now the decision has been reversed and passengers are only being charged at Rs2 per kilogram and passengers are paying it happily, said a railway employee.