Pak-Iran freight train service halts after 5 bogies derail due to dilapidated tracks

The freight train service between Pakistan and Iran remains suspended following the derailment of five bogies of a goods train coming from Zahedan in Iran to the Dalbandin area of Chagai district in Pakistan.

According to sources, the cause of the incident was the dilapidated condition of the tracks. Following the incident on Friday, the routine operation was suspended. In order to resume the operations, the repair and rehabilitation work is underway. As of now, no loss of life was reported in the accident.

Operations of a freight train between Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey were expected to resume in early 2021. However, the service still hangs in balance owing to numerous unresolved issues, reported ARY News.

Once the rail service is up and running, it will connect Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul (ITI), minimizing the time period of cargo travel to these countries.

Notably, 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.

( With inputs from ANI )