Wagah ( ur, ) or Wagha (

Shahmukhi Shahmukhi (, ) is a Perso-Arabic alphabet script used historically by Punjabi Muslims (primarily in present-day Pakistani Punjab) to write the Punjabi language. It is generally written in the Nastaʿlīq calligraphic hand, which is also used f ...

pnb, ) is a village and union council (UC 181) located in the Wahga Zone near Lahore City District,

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. The town is famous for the Wagah border ceremony and also serves as a goods transit terminal and a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

between

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. Wahga is situated west of the border and lies on the historic

Grand Trunk Road The Grand Trunk Road (formerly known as Uttarapath, Sarak-e-Azam, Shah Rah-e-Azam, Badshahi Sarak, and Long Walk) is one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads. For at least 2,500 years it has linked Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent. ...

between

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th List of largest cities, most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is th ...

and

Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha ...

. The border is located from

and from

. It is also from the bordering village of Attari, India. The Wagah ceremony takes place every evening.

Wagah-Attari border ceremony

Flag ceremony at Wahga border of Pak India

Border crossing

The border crossing draws its name from Wahga village, near which the

Radcliffe Line The Radcliffe Line was the boundary demarcated between the Indian and Pakistani portions of the Punjab Province and Bengal Presidency of British India. It was named after Cyril Radcliffe, who, as the joint chairman of the two boundary commissi ...

, the boundary

demarcation line {{Refimprove, date=January 2008 A political demarcation line is a geopolitical border, often agreed upon as part of an armistice or ceasefire. Africa * Moroccan Wall, delimiting the Moroccan-controlled part of Western Sahara from the Sahrawi ...

dividing India and Pakistan upon the

Partition of British India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: India and Pakistan. T ...

, was drawn. At the time of the independence in 1947, migrants from India entered Pakistan through this border crossing and vice versa. The Wagah railway station is to the south and from the border.

Border crossing ceremony

The Wagah-Attari border ceremony happens at the border gate, two hours before sunset each day. The flag ceremony is conducted by the

Pakistan Rangers The Pakistan Rangers ( ur, ) are a paramilitary federal law enforcement organization in Pakistan, operating under the authority of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan. Their primary purpose is to secure and defend sites of significance in th ...

and Indian

Border Security Force The Border Security Force (BSF) is India's border guarding organisation on its border with Pakistan and Bangladesh. It is one of the seven Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) of India, and was raised in the wake of the 1965 war on 1 December 1 ...

(BSF), similar to the retreat ceremonies at Ganda Singh Wala/ Hussainiwala border crossing and Mahavir/Sadqi International Parade Ground border crossing. A marching ceremony, known as the "Silly Walk ceremony", is conducted each evening along with the flag ceremony. The ceremony started in 1986 as an agreement of peace, although there was not a conflict at that time. Other Middle Eastern nations have adopted similar ceremonies in recent years.

Wagah flag

Following India's erection of a 360 ft (110m) flagpole on their side of the border in

Attari Attari, also spelled Atari, is a village of Amritsar district in the Punjab state of India, 3 km from the Indo-Pakistani border at Wagah. It is situated 25 km west of the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, and is the last Indian station on ...

, in August 2017, a 400 ft (122m) Pakistani flag was installed on the Wagah side. The pole in pattadei is the largest in India.

Gallery

File:Pakistani Flag Wahga Border.jpg, 122m high Pakistani Flag on Wagah Border File:Stadium wahga border.jpg, Stadium-like seating at Pakistani side of the border File:Wagha border.jpg, The Pakistani gate at the border crossing File:Bab e Azadi Wahga Border.jpg, Bab-e-Azadi (Gate of Independence) on Pakistani side of Wagah Border Wagah border indian bsf.jpg, Indian BSF at Wagah Women personnel of India's Border Security Force.jpg, Women personnel of Indian BSF at Wagah File:Soldiers at Wagah border.jpg, Punjab Rangers at Waga Milestone near Wagah Border.JPG, Milestone near Wagah Border File:Paddy field in Punjab 002.jpg, Paddy field near Wagah border

References

External links

{{wikinews-inline, Flag-lowering ceremony at Wagah border becomes more peaceful *

Michael Palin Sir Michael Edward Palin (; born 5 May 1943) is an English actor, comedian, writer, television presenter, and public speaker. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. Since 1980, he has made a number of travel documentaries. Palin w ...

br>at the India-Pakistan border ceremony on the Pakistani side
(from ''

Himalaya with Michael Palin ''Himalaya with Michael Palin'' is a 2004 BBC television series presented by comedian and travel presenter Michael Palin. It records his six-month trip around the Himalaya The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, ...

''). BBCWorldwide video on YouTube. *

Sanjeev Bhaskar Sanjeev Bhaskar (born 31 October 1963) is a British actor, comedian and television presenter. He is best known for his work in the BBC Two sketch comedy series '' Goodness Gracious Me'' and as the star of the sitcom ''The Kumars at No. 42''. H ...

br>at the India-Pakistan border ceremony on the Indian side
BBCWorldwide video on YouTube.
Pictures of independence's 60th anniversary celebration at Wagah Border
Wagha Town India–Pakistan border crossings Villages in Punjab, Pakistan Checkpoints