On a recent trip to #Punjab , I visited Hussainiwala along the Indo-Pak border - and the layers of stories blew me away! A thread...

One of India's oldest running trains, the Punjab Mail used to run from Bombay to Peshawar via Hussainiwala. It would run over the Kaisar-i-Hind bridge across the river Sutlej to Kasur ('Kasuri Methi' comes from here!), Lahore and finally Peshawar.

The train still runs daily, but terminates just before Hussainiwala at Firozpur. Pylons and piers of the Kaisar-i-Hind bridge still stand, and there's also a fixed single coach wherein I went for a virtual train journey along the OG route!

But here's the fascinating bit - twice a year, commemorative trains run till Hussainiwala... Baisakhi being one of them... speaking of which, #HappyBaisakhi2024 ! 🎊

The other day being #MartyrsDay (23 March), in memory of #BhagatSingh , #Rajguru , and #Sukhdev , who were also cremated here. A National Martyrs Memorial has been built around the spot where they were cremated; remembering their sacrifices was a moving experience.