By Dr. Sohail Ansari 

13th May 1861

First railway (of current Pakistan) Karachi – Kotri opened.

Brunton spent the years 1858 to 1864 building the Scinde Railway, a 173-km-long line from Karachi to Kotri on the Indus. This was the first railway line to be laid in the areas that now comprise Pakistan.

He noted: ”The natives of Scinde had never seen a locomotive engine, they had heard of them as dragging great loads on the lines by some hidden power they could not understand, therefore they feared them, supposing they moved by some diabolical agency, they called them Shaitan.”

The first train had five bogies and the journey costed 2 Annas. 200 passengers had the ride on Sindh Express as it was named.