Gwadar Pro
Rawalpindi: Pakistan’s railways minister said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to lay the foundation stone for the Rohri-Karachi section of the Main Line-1 railway project in September.
Muhammad Hanif Abbasi made the announcement this week after inaugurating new running rooms for railway guards and locomotive pilots at the Rawalpindi Railway Loco Shed.
Abbasi said the Rohri-Karachi section would be the first major phase of Pakistan Railways’ modernisation programme under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
He said work was also progressing on the proposed Main Line-3 project from Rohri to Zahidan, adding that the Economic Coordination Committee had approved it.
Pakistan Railways recorded annual revenue of Rs115 billion, which Abbasi described as its highest-ever figure. He said the department was on track to meet its fiscal revenue target by July 6.
The minister said operating expenditure had been reduced by about Rs3.6 billion, five passenger trains had been outsourced, freight revenue had risen by 32 percent and income from railway land had increased by more than 50 percent.
Abbasi said railway schools and hospitals were being outsourced under public-private partnerships, while digitalisation and right-sizing measures were being introduced across the department.
He said bids for 16 new power plants for power vans would be opened on Tuesday, and all existing power vans would be overhauled by March 23 next year.
The minister said all trains in the Pakistan Railways network would be upgraded by June 2027. He also announced plans to upgrade the exterior of Rawalpindi Railway Station by December.
Abbasi said passenger and freight fares had not been increased on the prime minister’s instructions.
