LAHORE: For the second time, Pakistan Railways has decided to reschedule stoppages of the Azadi Train, being run in connection with the Independence Day celebrations.

The train will have stoppage at Jacobabad instead of Sibbi on Friday (Aug 29) from where it will leave for Quetta through Dera Murad Jamali, Bakhtiarabad Domki and Sibbi. After a two-day stay at Quetta, the train will leave for Rohri.

The decision has been taken to facilitate general public, said an announcement on Thursday.

The Azadi Train was to start its month-long journey from Peshawar on Aug 11 to reach Karachi on Sept 11 after passing through all stations during its 4,000km journey. However, the train was rescheduled without giving any reason and it left Islamabad's Margalla Station on Aug 12 to reach Karachi on Sept 8 after covering a distance of 2,500km.

Two compartments of the train have been allocated to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) to highlight various aspects of the Freedom Movement and services rendered by armed forces to safeguard it. One compartment has been allocated to railways to highlight its history, and another to the information ministry.

Six floats on the train represent culture of each province and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, said the announcement.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2014