Mandra–Bhaun Railway ( ur, ) was one of several

railway lines in Pakistan This is a list of Railway lines in Pakistan. The lines and the stations are owned and operated by Pakistan Railways. Rail lines in Pakistan are divided into main lines and branch lines. Main lines Branch lines * Hyderabad–Badin Branch Line * ...

, operated and maintained 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 ...

. The line began at Mandra Junction and ended at

Bhaun Bhaun ( ur, ) is a town in Chakwal District in the Punjab province of Pakistan 12 kilometres away from the district capital Chakwal. In 2007 Pakistan Railways Pakistan Railways ( ur, ) is the national, state-owned railway company of Pak ...

, a village about south of the

Chakwal Chakwal ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a city in Rawalpindi Division, Punjab province, Pakistan. It is the 66th largest city of Pakistan by population. Chakwal is located 90 kilometres south-west of the federal capital, Islamabad and 270 kilomet ...

city, at the foothills of

Salt Range The Salt Range ( pnb, ) is a mountain range in the north of Punjab province of Pakistan, deriving its name from its extensive deposits of rock salt. The range extends along the south of the Potohar Plateau and the north of the Jhelum River. The ...

. The total length of this railway line was with 8 railway stations.

History

A railway line between Bhaun and Mandra was originally proposed to freight and ore from the mineral rich area of

, at the turn of the 20th century. In 1913, the

North Western State Railway The North Western State Railway (NWR) was formed in January 1886 from the merger of the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi Railway, the Indus Valley State Railway, the Punjab Northern State Railway, the eastern section of the Sind–Sagar Railway and the ...

began constriction began of the line. The 44 kilometer Mandra–Dhudial section was opened on 1 May 1915, the Dhudial–Chakwal section was opened on 1 June 1915 and the Chakwal-Bhaun section was opened on 15 January 1916. In 1993, against the wishes of the locals, the railway line was abandoned and dismantled. It is alleged that the

Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime ...

government allowed the dismantling to occur, as some members of the ruling government had intricate ties to the private road transport businesses of the region. In 1997, the Supreme Court took notice of the dismantling and a categorical assurance was given by Pakistan Railways to revive the rail section. In 2007, Pakistan Railways finalized a plan to reconstruct the line and resume rail services.

Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad ( ur, ; born 6 November 1950) is a Pakistani politician who served as the 38th Interior Minister of Pakistan from 2020 to 2022. He is famous because of his smoking cigars and Laal Haveli. He is the founder and leader of A ...

, who was then

Minister of Railways A Ministry of Railways is a Cabinet department that exists or has existed in many Commonwealth states as well as others. It generally occurs in countries where railroad transportation is a particularly important part of the national infrastructure. ...

, promised to revive the railway line within one and half year at the cost of . Again, Minister of Railways

Khawaja Saad Rafique Khawaja Saad Rafique (; born 4 November 1962) is a Pakistani politician who has been a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan since October 2018 and the current federal minister for Railways. A leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawa ...

proposed to revive the still defunct railway line in 2017.

Stations

* Mandra Junction *

Taragarh Taragarh is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representative ...

Sukho Sukho ( ur, سُكھو) is a Union Council of Gujar Khan, Rawalpindi District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located 3.5 km south of the Sukho Mor stop at the Mandra-Chakwal Road and is connected with Gujar Khan Gujar Khan (Punjabi/ ur, گُو ...

* Daultala *

Dhudial Dhudial is a village and union council,an administrative subdivision,of Chakwal District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan,it is part of Chakwal Tehsil. It is one of the largest villages of Chakwal District and is located at 33°3'52N 72°58'24E ...

* Chak Naurang *

References

Closed railway lines in Pakistan Railway lines opened in 1915 Railway lines closed in 1993 5 ft 6 in gauge railways in Pakistan Railway stations on Mandra–Bhaun Railway Line {{Pakistan-rail-transport-stub

History

Stations

See also

References