Pakistan Railways to run five Eid special trains from major cities

LAHORE: Pakistan Railways (PR) Minister Muhammad Hanif Abbasi decided to run five Eid special trains from provincial capital and other cities to manage additional rush of passengers during Eid ul Adha.

According to a press release issued on Monday, the railways minister had made this decision as per the direction of Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif.

The first special train would depart from Karachi Cantt railway station on June 2 at 1pm and reach Lahore the next day at 10am.

The second special train would depart from Quetta on June 3 at 10am and would reach Peshawar Cantt the next day at 10:30pm.

The third special train would depart from Lahore on June 3 at 5pm and arrive at Karachi Cantt station the next day at 2pm.

The fourth special train would depart from Karachi Cantt on June 3 at 7:30pm, which would reach Rawalpindi on the third day at 1:15am, and the fifth special train would depart from Karachi Cantt on June 4 and arrive at Lahore station the next day at 5:30pm.

Eid ul Adha falls on the 10th day of Zil Hajj, which also marks the Hajj pilgrimmage, and Muslims in Pakistan are expected to celebrate the occassion on June 7, according to a prediction by the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco).

The space agency said that the first of Zil Hajj — the final month in the Islamic lunar calendar — is likely to be observed on May 29, depending on the official moon sighting. This projection places Eid ul Adha on Saturday, June 7.

Suparco revealed that the Zil Hajj moon will be born on May 27 at 8:02am, but its age by sunset that day will only be 11 hours and 34 minutes, making the chances of visibility almost negligible across the country.

Eid ul Adha is the second of the two main festivals in Islam alongside Eid ul Fitr. Celebrations and observances are generally carried forward for three days