Islamabad: India and Pakistan today (Jan 15, 2004) resumed train services after a gap of over two years, with the Samjhauta Express steaming out of Lahore station to Attari in India around 9.00 hrs (IST).

Large crowds of relatives of passengers gathered at the station to bid an emotional farewell to their loved ones, who left for India by the train, which is also known as "Friendship Express".

From today, the train would run between Lahore and Attari every Monday and Thursday.

The two countries have now resumed rail, road and air links, which were severed after the terrorist attack on Indian Parliament in December 2001.

The countries have also agreed to run freight services, which were expected to play significant role, as India and Pakistan were poised to open up in a big way on the trade front under the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement signed during the recent South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit in Islamabad.

In addition to this, the two countries have decided to renew the agreement to run Lahore-Delhi bus service up to 2008 and run additional buses to meet the rush.