By Staff Reporter
JACOBABAD: The Quetta-bound Bolan Mail train was halted at Jacobabad railway station on Sunday due to security concerns, affecting approximately 150 passengers who were later transported to their destinations by bus under tight security, officials said.
According to Pakistan Railways officials, the train arrived at Jacobabad from Karachi shortly after midnight. The relevant authorities instructed the station master to hold the train and not allow it to proceed toward Quetta until security clearance was granted.
Pakistan Railways Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Amir Ali Baloch confirmed the hours-long stoppage, attributing it to security protocols that prohibit train operations in Balochistan during night-time.
“This train reached Jacobabad in the night hours, and if it had continued its journey, it would have reached Sibi late at night. Therefore, we stopped the train at Jacobabad, telling the passengers to wait until morning,” Baloch said.
A senior official from the Quetta division of Pakistan Railways reported that the train was carrying about 150 passengers. When security clearance was not received, the train’s onward journey was suspended. Subsequently, passengers were arranged to travel to Quetta and other destinations via buses under strict security measures.
However, conflicting reports emerged regarding the transportation arrangements.
Witnesses said passengers protested in Jacobabad after being asked to disembark, accusing the railway administration of abandoning them mid-journey despite charging the full fare from Karachi to Quetta.
The aggrieved passengers described the situation as an injustice, noting that the fare from Jacobabad to Quetta exceeded 1,000 rupees, yet some received only 200 rupees as a refund, while others were not reimbursed at all.
In response, CEO Baloch stated that some passengers were given refunds, and approximately 100 who requested alternative transportation were accommodated on buses to their destinations. He reiterated that the stoppage was a precautionary measure due to the ban on night-time train travel in Balochistan.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Railways announced a revision to the Bolan Mail’s schedule effective Tuesday. The 3UP train, which typically departs Karachi City Station at 7 p.m., will now leave four hours earlier at 3 p.m. Passengers, particularly those with advance bookings, have been urged to adjust their travel plans accordingly.
The incident highlights ongoing security challenges affecting rail travel in Balochistan, where night-time restrictions are enforced to ensure passenger safety.
The restrictions, aimed at curbing violence linked to the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), primarily affect public transport and cover Gwadar, Kachhi, Zhob, Noshki, and Musakhel districts, with additional measures for vehicles departing from Quetta.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s vast, sparsely populated southwest, has long simmered with unrest, as Baloch nationalists and separatists accuse the state of abuses like enforced disappearances and demand greater autonomy and rights for the region’s ethnic population.
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