ISLAMABAD - Minister for Railways Ghulam Ahmed Bilour has said that the pervious governments ignored Railways and no attention was paid to improve it.
Talking to APP, he said, “From the last 25 years no government has given any attention to improve the financial health and infrastructure of the Pakistan Railways”.
Ghulam Ahmed Bilour said the government has not paid desired fund to Pakistan Railway despite repeated requests.
The Minister said that Railways is in dilapidated condition, however, efforts are underway to improve its performance. He said most of the Railways fleet including passenger coaches, freight wagons and locomotives has been outdated and the whole institution needs a massive funding for restructuring.
He said work on dualization of Lodhran-Sahiwal track has been completed while dualization of Raiwind-Sahiwal section is underway.
He said that the completion of this project would help significantly reduce traveling time between Lahore and Karachi. He said Pakistan Railways is keen to rehabilitate the Railway services through public-private partnership.To a question, he said PR is offering track infrastructure to Pakistani private parties for use of their own trains in lieu of payment of Track Access Charges.
Due to acute shortage of funds the private parties have been invited to invest in repair of 200 inoperative locomotives on the basis of public private partnership.