LAHORE
The Pakistan Railways and the Punjab Urban Unit on Monday entered into an agreement for computerisation of former’s land.
The project will complete in next two years at cost of Rs400 million, said Shakil Ahmed, project director of the Railways Land, after the signing ceremony held at railways headquarter.
Railways minister Khawaja Saad Rafique and CEO Javid Anwar Bobak attended the event. Punjab Urban Unit MD Dr Nasir signed the agreement at his department’s end.
As per agreement, 27 teams will make survey of the department land. It was informed that out of 167,000 acres total land of the Railways, around 3,000 acres were illegally occupied.
The minister, on the occasion, termed the agreement as landmark and vowed to bring the department’s lost glory back. He regretted the lower courts, in majority of cases, issued stay orders in favour of the encroachers without hearing the Railways point of view. He requested the Supreme Court to take action on the matter.  The minister termed the kachi abadis by poor on some railways’ land as a human matter but added that no compromise will be made with the professional grabbers.
To a question, he replied that only KPK transferred the Railways land to the department while the remaining provinces so far had not obeyed the Supreme Court’s direction.  Khawaja Saad Rafique condemned the Yohanabad incident and expressed the government’s resolve to deal with terrorists with iron hand.