RAWALPINDI, Aug 28: Flood has partially suspended train service to Multan and Quetta from Rawalpindi for the last two weeks. However, it has been restored to Karachi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Railway Divisional Superintendent Tariq Khan told Dawn on Saturday that the railway tracks on Rawalpindi-Quetta and Rawalpindi-Multan sections were still under water.

He, however, did not give any time frame for complete restoration of railway traffic on these sections. The devastated flood has affected both rail and road traffic across the country.

Apart from this, all the major trains have been arriving late at the Rawalpindi Railway Station for the last two weeks, causing inconvenience to the people.

Rohi Express, Awam Express, Karakoram Express, Jaffar Express, Tazro, Tazgam, Allama Iqbal Express and Kyber Mail reach six to eight hours late at the railway station.

Mohammad Farooq, a passenger arrived from Karachi, said that the Tezgam reached eight hours late because it kept speed low and stopped at small stations. He demanded of the minister concerned to do away with small stations. “The trains must not stop over there,” he added.

Fareed Khan, who arrived via Awam Express along with his family, said that he would no more travel in train. “The Pakistan Railways had disappointed me a lot,” he said furiously.

Train service from Lahore to Peshawar via Rawalpindi remained suspended till August 8 due to heavy floods which damaged railway tracks in Nowshera, Akora and adjoining areas of River Indus.

Besides, four trains could not complete their journey as Multan-bound Mehr Express terminated its service at Liyya and Quetta-bound Jaffar Express was stopped at Rohri. Similarly, Kundian-bound Mianwali Express had to stop at 50 miles while the Khanpur-bound Rohri Express at Zahir Pir.

Multan passengers were offloaded at Liyya junction and Quetta passengers at Rohri junction where they had to look for other source of transportation to reach their destinations. Uncertainty still prevails over the resumption of trains' service, as the railway authorities are yet to take any action to repair the damaged tracks.

Replying to a question, Railway Divisional Superintendent Tariq Khan said that the floods did not affect the routine business of the Railways as the movement of passengers during Ramazan remained low. He said that the situation would improve after Eidul Fitr.

When asked whether Pakistan Railways would launch special trains during Eid days, he said the head office would announce the schedule of special trains for Eidul Fitr next week.

“The trains were arriving slightly late due to flood in Sindh and Punjab and the drivers are driving the trains at slow speed especially over the rivers,” said Divisional Superintendent Tariq Khan.

He expressed the hope that the trains would be run on time within a couple of days.