LAHORE (Staff Report) – The operations of Dosti Bus and Samjhota Express train between Pakistan and India Tuesday remained suspended for the second consecutive day.
According to officials, the operations have been suspended at the request of Indian authorities, and are likely to resume on Thursday.
Pakistan Railways officials say India-bound Samjhota Express train is scheduled to leave on Thursday with 200 passengers.
The Dosti Bus was scheduled to leave Lahore on Monday 7am, but now resumption of its service is subjected to clearance from India.
Earlier on Monday, Pakistan and India decided to extend visas of stranded citizens by another week to facilitate them to return to their respective country after restoration of Samjhauta Train and Dosti Bus services.
The Amritsar-Nankana Sahib bus service for Sikhs was continued as usual.
India had hauled the bus and train services after caste riots in Haryana state where at least 19 people were killed in week-long protests by Jat community.
Fresh rioting and arson erupted in India’s Haryana state in caste protests that have left more than 20 people dead, and New Delhi faced a water crisis after mobs shut down a key supply.
Thousands of troops with shoot-on-sight orders were deployed in Haryana after week-long protests turned violent, with rioters setting fire to homes and railway stations and blocking highways.
The Jat rural caste is leading the protests, demanding quotas be set for Jats for highly sought-after government jobs and for university places. Caste members say they are struggling to find places despite India’s strong economic growth.
