On board there were two RPF personnel per coach, who will accompany the passengers till Attari. The gates of the train were also sealed and there are instructions to not let anyone get on or off till Attari as there are no stops in between. Other states from where the train passes in its journey to Attari have been alerted to ensure security.

While still nervous, the passengers seem to have been reassured by the security measures. Mohammad Qasim, travelling with his mother, uncle and aunt, had an extra reason to be thankful. But for the fact that they couldn’t get tickets, they would have been on the Sunday Samjhauta that was ripped by the blasts.

Mohammad Yusuf and Kusum Musa, travelling with their three children, had to face a tough time as the latter’s visa had already expired. Four hours, and intervention by a few mediapersons later, the family finally got tickets.

For others, fear couldn’t be an issue. Mohammad Ehsan from Saharanpur was going for the first time to Pakistan to meet his sister. “All these years I never had the money to buy the ticket. Now I am not afraid of anything.”