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First commercial bus from Lahore crosses Wagah

Exactly 23 days after Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's historic bus trip to Pakistan, the first commercial bus from Lahore to New Delhi rolled into the Indian territory today through the Wagah joint check-post with 20 passengers and three crew members on board.

However, the 44-seater luxury coach of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation was almost half empty because a number of persons interested in travelling by this bus were not issued visas on time by the Indian embassy in Islamabad. The passengers included 14 women besides a liaison officer and two drivers.

The bus, which crossed the zero line at 0810 hours, left for Delhi after an hour, after the completion of immigration and customs formalities. Three armed Punjab police personnel also boarded the PTDC coach which would be escorted up to New Delhi by a police vehicle.

The passengers, who were all praise for Vajpayee for his bus 'yatra' across the border, were overjoyed to be on board the first commercial bus to enter India since Partition.

However, they were given a rather cold reception on their arrival at the Wagah border. Except senior Border Security Force, customs and immigration officials, no senior civil official or minister of the Punjab government turned up to welcome them.

Izhar Amrohvi, parliamentary secretary to former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto, who was on board the bus along with his wife and two daughters, said though he had been to India a number of times, today's trip was special. ''I just cannot express my sentiments in words,'' he added while advocating that travel through the land route should be liberalised by both the countries.

Amrohvi, who will be visiting his relatives in Delhi, opined that such steps would definitely help in improving relations between the two countries and lessening tension. Benazir had even advocated that the two countries should have a joint currency, he claimed.

Amrohvi said Benazir was very keen to visit the dargah of Khwaja Hazrat Mohiuddin Chisti in Ajmer and would approach the Indian government soon. Amrohvi and his family are also planning to visit Ajmer.

Almost all the passengers complained that they had a lot of problems in getting a visa from the Indian embassy at Islamabad for the 526 kilometre bus journey from Lahore to New Delhi costing Rs 800 (Indian currency) per passenger which would include meals.

Syed Hussain, the liaison officer who had been deputed by the PTDC to travel on the coach along with the passengers, said a number of persons who were interested in travelling on the bus were not issued visas.

Hussain felt that the rules for issuing visas should be relaxed if the bus service was to be made a success. Regarding the fare, the passengers by and large said that, considering the facilities being provided on board, the fare was reasonable and would suit those who cannot afford air travel and find train travel uncomfortable.

The bus would halt at Punjab tourism resorts at Kartarpur and Sirhind and at Pipli in Haryana before reaching Delhi.

UNI

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