LAHORE, Dec 6: There was a big rush at the Lahore railway station and Badami Bagh and Bund Road bus stands on the last working day before the Eidul Azha holidays.
Eid holidays begin from Monday (Dec 8) and residents of other cities started leaving Lahore on Friday evening.
People started coming to the railway station and the bus stands early in the morning but the number started considerably increasing by noon when schools and offices closed, resulting in worst traffic jams on nearby thoroughfares and
Non-functional traffic signals because of loadshedding at Samanabad Mor, Taxali and Bhatti gates, Azadi Chowk, Yateem Khana Chowk, Babu Sabu, Scheme Mor, Chungi and Thokar Niaz Beg and near Badami Bagh Bus Stand aggravates the mess-up. Instead of managing traffic, wardens remained busy in imposing fines on motorcyclists.
The six special trains, run by the railway administration to cater to the Eid rush, seemed insufficient keeping in view the number of people intending to ride trains to journey to their home towns to join families for Eid. Long queues were seen at booking offices at the railway station. People were seen embarking on the passenger trains’ coaches and locomotives at Badami Bagh, Shahdara, Cantt, Kot Lakhpat and Raiwind City railway stations.
Strict security arrangements were made at the Lahore railway station while no such measure were seen at the Badami Bagh and Bund Road bus stands where hundreds of people came to catch a train or a bus to go to their hometowns on Eidul Fitr.
All entry and exit points to the city railway station were properly manned and incoming passengers and their luggage was checked with the metal detectors while a number of policemen were seen on patrol on all the plate forms.
Operators of a few buses and coaches were seen using metal detectors to check commuters boarding the vehicles at some Badami Bagh bus bays but they were not bothered about the luggage, being loaded either on top or under the seats.
At the railway station, a number of passengers were seen searching for space in the trains along with sacrificial animals while at the two bus stands almost every commuter was found complaining about overcharging and misbehaviour by transporters.
"I prefer going to my hometown in a train because the road transporters always overcharge and misbehave on occasions like Eid," said Javed Iqbal who was going to Khanewal.
“Journey through rail is comparatively safe," a police officer told this reporter at platform No 4. “I couldn't accompany my family this time but I am sure they'll reach home without less hassle than the road transport.”
A Punjab government employee was complaining about the non-availability of public toilet facilities on the platforms. “All toilets inside the railway station are not usable. The stench of garbage, broken utensils and running water pipes make toilets no-go areas.”
Seconding the assertion of government employee another passenger, Jamshed, said: “The non-availability of toilets on platforms cause problems, especially for the elderly and children.”
The sanitary conditions on all platforms were far from satisfactory.
Some 100,000 or so people visit the Lahore railway station, the busiest in the country, daily on an average and the number considerably increases on weekends and before and after such holidays. Also, the railways police said security arrangement on all entry points to the Lahore station intensified.
A Railways police spokesman said a master plan has been prepared to ensure the security of passengers. Lady commandoes would also travel in all the trains. The number of plainclothesmen at platforms had also been increased manifold.
Regarding the practice to travel on the roofs of coaches and locomotives, the spokesman said owing to staff shortage the trend could not be checked on all stations.
—Zaheer Mahmood Siddiqui