Post Op Sindoor, Attari loses its charm; footfall almost halves

Attari: As the sun dips over the fields of Amritsar, the road to Attari (India)-Wagah (Pakistan) border — famous for ‘Beating The Retreat' ceremony — tells a story of decline. There was a time, not long ago, when this stretch of National Highway 3 felt like a pilgrimage.

Buses lined the roadside. Vendors waved tricolour flags. Men, women and children painted their cheeks in saffron, white, and green.The buzz is still there, but the crowds have nearly halved after Operation Sindoor, reveals data. According to Attari protocol officer Arun Mahal, the daily footfall was 20,000-25,000 on weekdays and 30,000 on weekends before Operation Sindoor, but this figure has now come down to 10,000-15,000.

After Operation Sindoor, carried out to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack, the ceremony had been entirely suspended from May 8 to 20, 2025. When it resumed, the customary handshake between the Border Security Force and the Pakistan Rangers was gone. The gates, too, no longer opened wide enough for visitors to steal a glance of the neighbouring nation.Ashutosh Biswas, who had travelled from Kolkata with his family to see the ceremony, said he had been watching videos of the ceremony, but it was not like what he saw online. "We kept waiting for the moment when the gates would swing open and the jawans would approach each other, but it didn't happen. We thought the ceremony would have come back to its usual self, but it hasn't," said Biswas.Aradhna, a student from Chennai who saw Beating The Retreat with her parents, questioned the rationale behind toning down the ceremony.

"They're playing cricket. Even if they don't shake hands, they could open the gates for tourists," she said.Mahal said the footfall might not be like what it was earlier, but had improved over the past few months. "When we restarted after Operation Sindoor, the footfall was mere thousands. The recovery, though slow, has begun," he said.Ceremony to start at 5pmDue to a change in weather conditions, the timing of ‘Beating The Retreat' ceremony at the Attari–Wagah border has been revised from 4.30pm-5pm to 5pm-5.30pm. Protocol officer Arun Mahal informed the decision was taken keeping in mind the late sunset during summer.