Pakistan Wagah Border: Why 6 decades old tradition is becoming an embarrassment for Pakistani Army

Rising inflation and security concerns in Pakistan have also cooled the enthusiasm of the soldiers at the Wagah border. Compared to India, the number of participants in Pakistan’s parade is decreasing day by day. A relic of the 1947 partition as the crowds continue to dwindle compared to those attending the parade from across the border. Initially, the parade saw very small crowds when the coronavirus pandemic brought the world to a standstill. However, since the world returned to normalcy, the Wagah Border has not seen the same enthusiasm since then. Socio-economic factors are the biggest reason behind this now. Analysts believe that inflation is the main reason behind this. He also believes that the younger generation is no longer interested in aggressive parades.

The Wagah-Attari border connects two major cities of Punjab on both sides of the border and is famous for the glamorous flag-hoisting ceremonies that take place daily. Soldiers from Pakistan Rangers, Punjab and Border Security Force (BSF) participate in the parade and respectfully lower their respective national flags. In the past thousands of citizens come from both sides of the border to attend this parade. The stadium built by Pakistan has a seating capacity of 10,000 people. However, on these days only 1,500 to 2,000 people are found in the audience, with the only exception being Sundays when the number reaches 3,000. While regular attendances have declined, the stadium sees throngs of spectators on national days.

On the other side of the border, the stadium built by India has a capacity of 25,000 spectators and is relatively larger than regular Pakistanis. Asri Khan came to Lahore from Karachi to visit her relatives and attended the parade for the first time. He told The Express Tribune that he did not see the enthusiasm he sees on television as the stadium was half empty.