The Jammu–Sialkot line was a
broad gauge[Newman's Indian Bradshaw, February 1935, Newman and Co Ltd, Calcutta, 1935, p.138] branch of the
North Western State Railway from
Wazirabad Junction, Punjab, to
Jammu
Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of ...
, passing through the
Sialkot Junction. The section from Sialkot to Jammu (Tawi) was 27 miles (43 km) long, partly in the British Indian province of
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
and partly in the princely state of
Jammu and Kashmir Built in 1890 during the reign of Maharaja
Pratap Singh, it was the first railway line in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
The railway line ran till 18 September 1947, when the newly independent
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
, which inherited the North Western State Railway from British India, suspended the train service.
[ The railway line fell into disrepair.] A new line between Pathankot
Pathankot is a city and the district headquarters of the Pathankot district in Punjab, India. Pathankot is the 6th most populous city of Punjab, after Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala and Bathinda. Its local government is a municipal co ...
and Jammu was built by Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tota ...
in 1972.[
]
Construction
The Jammu–Sialkot line was constructed as an extension of the Wazirabad–Sialkot line built in 1883–1884, at the initiative of the Maharaja's government. Maharaja Ranbir Singh () wrote to the Governor General of India with a proposal offering to fund its construction, which was agreed. He was soon succeeded by Maharaja Pratap Singh, who continued the negotiations culminating in an agreement. The agreement stipulated that the railway would be operated by the North Western Railway, that the Maharaja would receive one per cent interest on the investment and that the earnings in excess of the one per cent would be shared equally between the Northwestern Railway and the Maharaja's government for 5 years, subject to a fresh agreement after the expiry of the term. The Maharaja's investment was close to Rs. 1 million (1.3 million according to other accounts). However, this clause was cancelled in the supplementary agreement, and the Punjab section of the line was funded by Government of India
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
instead.
The construction was carried out between 1888–1890. It is reported that the section of the railway in Punjab was laid with 60 lbs. second-hand wrought iron rails but the Jammu and Kashmir section was laid with 75 lbs. new steel rails.
Stations
In the 1935 timetable, the section's timetable shows 4 pairs of passenger trains running between Sialkot and Jammu (Tawi). Two pairs ran from Wazirabad and two pairs from Sialkot. The journey time between Sialkot and Jammu (Tawi) averaged about 90 minutes. The intermediate stations listed in the timetable are (from west to east) Sialkot Cantonment
Sialkot Cantonment (Urdu: سیالکوٹ چھاؤنی) is a military cantonment area in Sialkot adjacent to the city. It is one of the oldest and most important Cantonments of Pakistan. It was established in 1852 by the British Indian Army. As ...
, Suchetgarh, Ranbir Singh Pora
Ranbir Singh Pora is a town and nagar panchayat, near city of Jammu in Jammu district of the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It was the first planned city of J&K, that's why it is also known as Nawa Shehar. RS Pura is also one of ...
, Miran Saheb and Jammu Cantonment.
The Jammu and Kashmir state border crossed the line 0.26 miles (0.42 km) east of Suchetgarh station. Thus the first station on the state side was Ranbir Singh Pora.
Demise
After the partition of India on 15 August 1947, the new Dominion of Pakistan
Between 14 August 1947 and 23 March 1956, Pakistan was an independent federal dominion in the Commonwealth of Nations, created by the passing of the Indian Independence Act 1947 by the British parliament, which also created the Dominion of ...
inherited the North Western Railway. The government of Maharaja Hari Singh
Maharaja Sir Hari Singh (September 1895 – 26 April 1961) was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Hari Singh was the son of Amar Singh and Bhotiali Chib. In 1923, following his uncle's death, Singh became ...
made a standstill agreement
The term standstill agreement refers to various forms of agreement which businesses may enter into in order to delay action which might otherwise take place.
A standstill agreement may be used as a form of defence to a hostile takeover, when a t ...
with Pakistan for continuance of all the pre-existing arrangements. However, the railway service was suspended by Pakistan on or about 18 September 1947. The act was regarded as a violation of the standstill agreement by Jammu and Kashmir. It also created hardships for the Jammu Muslims who wanted to find safety in Sialkot in the midst of increasing communal tension in Jammu.[ With the state's accession to India on 26 October and the ensuring ]Kashmir war
Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompass ...
between the two Dominions, the suspension of the railway line became permanent. The train service was never resumed.
The railway line fell into disrepair afterwards. In June–July 1948, when there was a pause in the fighting of the Kashmir War after the arrival of the UNCIP
The United Nations Security Council Resolution 47, adopted on 21 April 1948, concerns the resolution of the Kashmir conflict. After hearing arguments from both India and Pakistan, the Council increased the size of the UN Commission created by t ...
, the Indian Army Corps of Engineers used the steel rails of the railway to repair sections of roads damaged by the Pakistani forces.
The station buildings such as of Ranbir Singh Pora
Ranbir Singh Pora is a town and nagar panchayat, near city of Jammu in Jammu district of the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It was the first planned city of J&K, that's why it is also known as Nawa Shehar. RS Pura is also one of ...
and others went abandoned. In 2000, the old Jammu (Tawi) railway station was demolished to make way for an art centre.
A new railway line between Pathankot
Pathankot is a city and the district headquarters of the Pathankot district in Punjab, India. Pathankot is the 6th most populous city of Punjab, after Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala and Bathinda. Its local government is a municipal co ...
in Indian Punjab
Punjab (; ) is a state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the north and northeast, Haryana to the south and southeast, and ...
and Jammu was built by the Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tota ...
. The Pathankot– Madhopur section was built by 1955, the Madhopur– Kathua section by 1965 and the Kathua–Jammu section by 1972. Trains run from Jammu to Kanya Kumari at the southern end of India.
Potential revival
It has been suggested that the route be reopened for trade between India and Pakistan. In July 2001, the Agra Summit was convened to resolve long-standing issues between Pakistan and India.[Train to Sialkot: Nostalgia dies hard for some Jammu veterans](_blank)
– Pradeep Dutta. ''Indian Express'', 16 July 2001. Unfortunately, the summit failed to produce any tangible outcome. A detailed survey in December 2013 by Pakistan Railways
Pakistan Railways ( ur, ) is the national, state-owned railway company of Pakistan. Founded in 1861 and headquartered in Lahore, it owns of track across Pakistan, stretching from Torkham to Karachi, offering both freight and passenger servi ...
showed that the line is unusable and would require billions of rupees to repair and potentially run trains from Jammu to Lahore and further into Amritsar. No interest in the line has been expressed by archaeological authorities or the Northern Railway division of India.
See also
* Partab Pul in Bunji
References
Bibliography
*
*
External links
Agreement between the Government of India and His Highness Maharaja Partab Singh, 1888
in Aitchison, C. U. (ed), ''A Collection of Treaties, Engagements and Sanads'', Vol. XII, 1929, republished 1981.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jammu-Sialkot Line
Transport in Sialkot
Rail transport in Jammu and Kashmir
Closed railway lines in India
Closed railway lines in Pakistan
Economy of Jammu and Kashmir
Firozpur railway division
Northern Railway zone
Transport in Jammu
India–Pakistan relations