For us it's not just a moment of pride but a historical event

More than five decades ago, an assembly member from Baramulla, Peer Shamusuddin, had raised a question in the assembly seeking efforts for a direct railway link between Baramulla and the rest of the country.

- Mir Ehsan

SRINAGAR: More than five decades ago, an assembly member from Baramulla, Peer Shamusuddin, had raised a question in the assembly seeking efforts for a direct railway link between Baramulla and the rest of the country. Today, his son, who is in his early 60s, has seen his dream being fulfilled after Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the first Vande Bharat Express connecting Katra and Srinagar.

With this, Kashmir now has all-weather railway connectivity with the rest of the country. Not only the government, political leaders, business community, and even the common man termed this a historical event.

"My father was an assembly member from Baramulla (1965 to 1971). He had raised this question in the then legislative assembly that Baramulla and Srinagar should get a train connectivity with the rest of the country. That time it looked like an impossible thing. But today, when PM Modi flagged off the train from Katra, I saw the dream of my father and many Kashmiris being turned into a reality. For us, it's not just a moment of pride but a historical event," said Peer Jalaludin, former Baramulla mayor and a senior PDP leader.