The Senate Standing Committee on Pakistan Railways (PR) was informed on Wednesday about Pakistan Railways’ plan to introduce four smart railway cars on different major routes through public-private partnerships.
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Secretary Railways Syed Mazhar Ali Shah announced during the meeting that Pakistan Railways aims to implement these smart railway cars on routes between Lahore-Islamabad, Lahore-Faisalabad, Lahore-Multan, and Karachi-Hyderabad at an estimated cost of $45 million. He emphasized that private partners would contribute a portion of the profit to maintain the tracks.
The meeting, chaired by Senator Jam Saifullah Khan, included Senators Saifullah Sarwar Khan Nyazee, Kamil Ali Agha, and Dost Ali Jessar, along with Secretary Syed Mazhar Ali Shah and other senior officials. Shah highlighted that railways are 62 percent safer and 72% more environmentally friendly than roads and could economically benefit the country by reducing the oil import bill.
Despite its potential, Pakistan only formulated its first transport policy in 2018. Pakistan Railways is working towards self-reliance, aiming to increase its market share from 8 percent to 30 percent, though financial constraints pose challenges. Shah noted that 95 percent of the railway budget is spent on pensions, pay, and fuel, leaving only 5% for maintenance. For the financial year 2024-25, pension liabilities are expected to reach around Rs. 62 billion.
To address financial issues, Pakistan Railways has minimized operational costs and requested the federal government to include railway pensioners in the national account. Discussing the ML-1 project, Shah mentioned that ECNEC has approved the ML-1 upgrade project at a cost of around $6.68 billion. The first phase will upgrade the track from Karachi to Multan, followed by Multan to Peshawar in the next phase. The committee decided to hold an exclusive session on the ML-1 project and visit the Islamabad and Lahore railway workshops to assess their performance.
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