Lahore Junction railway station

Lahore Junction Railway Station (Urdu, Punjabi: لاہور جنکشن ریلوے اسٹیشن), is the main railway station in Lahore, Pakistan. It is among the oldest railway stations of the Indian subcontinent. Construction commenced shortly after the 1857 War of Independence.^[1] It was built in the style of a medieval fort with thick walls, turrets, and holes to direct gun and cannon fire for the defence of the structure.^[2]

Lahore Junction Railway Station لاہور جنکشن ریلوے اسٹیشن
Lahore Junction Station Entrance
General information
Location	Empress Road (Shahrah-e-Abdul Hameed bin Badees) Lahore-54000 Pakistan
Coordinates	31.5772°N 74.3363°E / 31.5772; 74.3363
Owned by	Ministry of Railways
Line(s)	Karachi–Peshawar Railway Line Lahore–Wagah Branch Line
Platforms	11
Connections	LTC (B-5) PMTA (FR-1, FR-3, FR-9) Lahore Metro (Lahore Station)
Construction
Structure type	Standard (on ground station)
Platform levels	2
Parking	Available
Bicycle facilities	Available
Accessible	Available
Other information
Status	Functional
Station code	LHR
Fare zone	Pakistan Railways Lahore Zone
History
Opened	1860; 164 years ago (1860)
Electrified	Yes
Previous names	Guru Amar Das Railway Station
Services
Preceding station Pakistan Railways Following station Lahore Cantonment towards Kiamari Karachi–Peshawar Line Badami Bagh towards Peshawar Cantonment Terminus Lahore–Wagah Branch Line Moghalpura Junction towards Wagah
Location Lahore Junction Station Location within Lahore Show map of Lahore Lahore Junction Station Lahore Junction Station (Pakistan) Show map of Pakistan

It is located at the junction between Circular Road and Allama Iqbal Road and bounded on the north side by the old Grand Trunk Road. The station is now owned by Pakistan Railways, and also serves as its headquarters.

History

Further information: History of rail transport in Pakistan

The station's design is highly militarised, having been constructed in the immediate aftermath of the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny.

The station was built during the colonial era, and was built just outside the Walled City at the intersection of Empress Road, Allama Iqbal Road and Circular Road. Lahore Junction station was constructed by Mian Mohammad Sultan Chughtai, a former official of the Mughal Empire, between 1859 and 1860.^[3]

The station was also a witness to a brutal lathi charge in British era that took place on 30 October 1928 near the premises of the junction when Indian leader Lala Lajpat Rai had led a protest march against the Simon Commission that had come to Lahore to discuss political reforms in the town. Rai was beaten by a wooden baton by the then Police Superintendent of Lahore and was badly wounded. Rai later died of his injuries on 17 November.

The station served as the headquarters for the Punjab Railway and later would serve as the northern terminus of the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi Railway, which connected the port city of Karachi to Lahore. The nearby Dai Anga Mosque was also converted into offices for the railways at this time. The station was built in the style of a medieval castle to ward off any potential future uprisings, as seen in the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, with thick walls, turrets, and holes to direct gun and cannon fire for the defence of the structure.^[4]

The station is a legacy of the extensive railway network established during the British Raj, and reflects the British contribution to the region's infrastructure. The station was severely affected during the riots which followed the Partition of the British Indian Empire and the independence of Pakistan in 1947. Similar to the contemporaneous situation of Muslims fleeing Delhi and Amritsar,^[5] Lahore's Hindus and Sikhs were sometimes attacked at Lahore's train station.

Inside the Station

Lahore Junction Station view from top

Lahore Junction Station inner view

Lahore Junction Station outer wall

Facilities

Lahore Junction Station is equipped with all basic facilities such as ticketing services, washrooms and waiting areas. The station has current and advance reservation offices for Pakistan Railways, as well as freight and parcel facilities. Retail shops are found mainly on platforms 2 , 4 and 5.

Overview

The Lahore railway station is located at an elevation of 213 metres (764 ft) and was assigned the code "LHR". With this, it has become the busiest railway station of Pakistan in terms of passenger movement and train traffic. Lahore railway station has free WiFi and CCTV cameras.

Services

These trains serve Lahore Junction station:

Up Destination	Train	Train Name	Train	Down Destination
Karachi Cantt	1 Up	Khyber Mail Express	2 Dn	Peshawar Cantt
Karachi Cantt	5 Up	Green Line Express	6 Dn	Islamabad
Karachi Cantt	7 Up	Tezgam Express	8 Dn	Rawalpindi
Karachi Cantt	9 Up	Allama Iqbal Express	10 Dn	Sialkot
Karachi Cantt	13 Up	Awam Express	14 Dn	Peshawar Cantt
Karachi Cantt	15 Up	Karachi Express	16 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Quetta	23 Up	Akbar Express	24 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Karachi Cantt	27 Up	Shalimar Express	28 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Karachi Cantt	31 Up	Jinnah Express	32 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Karachi Cantt	33 Up	Pak Business Express	34 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Karachi City	37 Up	Fareed Express	38 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Quetta	39 Up	Jaffer Express	40 Dn	Peshawar Cantt
Karachi Cantt	41 Up	Karakorum Express	42 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Karachi Cantt	43 Up	Shah Hussain Express	44 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
(Lahore Junction)	101 Up	Subak Raftar Express	102 Dn	Rawalpindi
(Lahore Junction)	103 Up	Subak Kharam Express	104 Dn	Rawalpindi
(Lahore Junction)	105 Up	Rawal Express	106 Dn	Rawalpindi
(Lahore Junction)	107 Up	Islamabad Express	108 Dn	Rawalpindi
Faisalabad	111 Up	Badar Express	112 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Faisalabad	113 Up	Ghouri Express	114 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Multan	115 Up	Musa Pak Express	116 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Multan	117 Up	Multan Express	118 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Faisalabad	119 Up	Faisal Express	120 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Shorkot Cantt	121 Up	Ravi Express	122 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
Sargodha	123 Up	Sargodha Express	124 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
(Lahore Junction)	125 Up	Lasani Express	126 Dn	Sialkot
Mari Indus	147 Up	Mianwali Express	148 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
(Lahore Junction)	205 Up	Babu Passenger	206 Dn	Wazirabad
Shorkot Cantt	207 Up	Waris Shah Passenger	208 Dn	(Lahore Junction)
(Lahore Junction)	209 Up	Faiz Ahmed Faiz Passenger	210 Dn	Narowal
(Lahore Junction)	211 Up	Narowal Passenger	212 Dn	Narowal
Attari	401 Up	Samjhota Express	402 Dn	(Lahore Junction)

Other Services

Pakistan Railways is headquartered in Lahore. Pakistan Railways provides an important mode of transportation for commuters and connects distant parts of the country with Lahore for business, sightseeing, pilgrimage, and education. The Lahore railway station, built during the British colonial era, is located in the heart of the city and serves as the major entry and exit point of the city. Other railway stations within Lahore include:

• Badami Bagh railway station
• Harbanspura railway station
• Jallo railway station
• Kot Lakhpat railway station
• Lahore Cantonment railway station
• Moghalpura Junction railway station
• Walton railway station

Gallery

• 
• 
  General View of Railway Station in June 2019
• 
  Far view of Railway Station in 1880s
• 
  Fortifications of Railway Station 1895 by William Henry Jackson
• 
  Railway Station in 1880s
• 
  Railway Station Interior View 1880s
• 
  Train platform at Lahore Railway Station
• 
  Lahore - entrance to railway station 1895
• 
  Lahore - interior of railway station 1895
• 
  Lahore - general view of railway station 1895

See also

• Pakistan Railways
• List of railway stations in Pakistan

References

1. "Scinde, Punjaub & Delhi Railway - FIBIwiki". wiki.fibis.org. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
2. Glover, William (January 2007). Making Lahore Modern, Constructing and Imagining a Colonial City. Univ of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0-8166-5022-4. The Lahore station, built during a time when securing British civilians and troops against a future "native" uprising was foremost in the government's mind, fortified medieval castle, complete with turrets and crenellated towers, battered flanking walls, and loopholes for directing rifle and cannon fire along the main avenues of approach from the city
3. "Lahore Railway Station: A Look into the Past". Youlin Magazine.
4. Glover, William (January 2007). Making Lahore Modern, Constructing and Imagining a Colonial City. Univ of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0816650224. The Lahore station, built during a time when securing British civilians and troops against a future "native" uprising was foremost in the government's mind, fortified medieval castle, complete with turrets and crenellated towers, battered flanking walls, and loopholes for directing rifle and cannon fire along the main avenues of approach from the city
5. "International Rail Connections". irfca. Retrieved 16 September 2023.

External links

• Pakistan Railways official site Archived 1 February 2021 at the Wayback Machine
• A short history of Lahore railway station Archived 19 August 2013 at the Wayback Machine