Pak-Iran goods train service restored after week-long suspension

CHAGAI: The goods train service between Pakistan and Iran has been restored after remaining suspended for seven days, quoting railway officials ARY News reported on Tuesday.

The train service was suspended last week after hailstorm and rain torrents had damaged the railway track, according to officials.

In an incident earlier, the train service was suspended as six bogies of a freight train, which was on its way from Zahedan to Quetta, was derailed near Yadgar Close Station owing to the bad railway track, a railway official said.

According to railway sources, at least one derailment incident always takes place in the summer season which makes the condition of ageing railway tracks more dilapidated.

It is to be mentioned here that operations of a freight train between Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey was expected to resume in early 2021 but the service yet to be started owing to various unresolved issues.

The rail service will connect Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul (ITI), minimizing the time period of cargo travel to these countries.

The total length of the ITI project is 6500 km which covers 2600 km distance in Iran, 1950 km in Turkey, and 1990 km in Pakistan.