KARACHI: Though August 14 was almost two weeks ago, the spirit of independence was revived as Pakistan Railways’ Azadi Train travelled throughout the country while gracing several cities along the way. Starting from the Margalla Railway in Rawalpindi, it chugged into the Cantonment Railway Station here, its last stop, on Sunday night.

Mohammad Saeed, the engine driver of the Azadi Train, said that several drivers drove the train as it travelled from province to province and city to city but he himself took charge at Tando Adam. “We also passed through several stations where we didn’t stop as it was not in our travel plan but the people had come there to cheer for us,” he told Dawn.

Nabi Bux Baloch, his assistant driver, also shared that people were waving at them even when they passed by rural areas. “Night or day, the people were there to wave at us,” he said.

The train, comprising 11 bogies and six beautifully decorated floats that represent each of Pakistan’s provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir and even a float for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor made stops at the railway stations in Peshawar, Lahore, Multan, Sukkur, Quetta where several artists and singers travelling with it also performed.

They also took to the stage at platform no 8 of Cantonment Station on reaching here and entertained the public waiting eagerly for the train to arrive for hours. Meanwhile, they were also given a warm welcome by children of the Pakistan Railways Girls School who also performed regional dances and sang soul-lifting national songs.

“Our independence is something that we should never take for granted. It is something which we should celebrate every day,” said Shafqat Ali, a father, who was there to welcome the train with his two little sons Shafaat and Haseeb wearing green T-shirts, caps and wrist bands.

Mr and Mrs Majeed Shaikh were there with their little boy Abdullah Shaikh, who was looking forward to the puppet show to be staged in one of the bogies. He just couldn’t wait for the railway authorities to unlock the doors.

The bogies, like the floats also followed several themes. There was one dedicated to the people who came to Pakistan from India after independence and their sacrifices. There was one dedicated to the sports personalities of Pakistan. Of course, the founders of Pakistan, the Quaid-i-Azam and Allama Iqbal, had a separate place of honour inside the train. There was also a bogie with pictures of all the prime ministers of Pakistan, including the current PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

The Azadi Train will be open to the public on Monday.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2017