E-Paper
Delhi-Lahore bus leaves for Pak amidst security
The Delhi-Lahore bus with 46 passengers on board left for its Pakistani destination early this morning.
The Delhi-Lahore bus with 46 passengers on board left for its Pakistani destination early on Tuesday morning amidst tight security, a day after two powerful explosions ripped through the trans-border Samjhauta Express train in Deewana killing over 60 people.
Twenty-nine Pakistani nationals and 19 Indians, who boarded the fully air-conditioned "Sada-e-Sarhad" bus, left for Lahore from Ambedkar Stadium bus terminal in Central Delhi at 6 am.
Tight security measures were in place at the Delhi Transport Corporation's terminal from where the bus started its journey.
Passengers were frisked and baggages thoroughly scanned before the bus left the station. The bomb disposal squad also conducted a thorough check of the bus. Security personnel were also deployed in huge numbers.
The "Sada-e-Sarhad" bus service was re-started on July 11, 2003. The service, which was launched amidst much fanfare during 1999, was suspended after the 2001 Parliament attack.
The DTC runs a service from Delhi on every Tuesday and Friday while Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation operates on every Wednesday and Saturday.
As regards the return journey, DTC bus leaves Lahore on every Wednesday whereas PTDC bus leaves Delhi on every Tuesday and Friday.
In a major terror attack, 67 people, mostly Pakistani nationals, were charred to death and nearly 15 injured, 12 of them seriously, when two powerful explosions ripped through two coaches of the Lahore-bound SamjhautaSamjhauta Express turning them into a moving inferno in Deewana, about 100 km from New Delhi.
