In the Senate session, the Minister for Railways' Sheikh Rasheed has said on Wednesday that railways owned a land of 20,000 acres that was not in use and I leave it on the Cabinet to decide whether the land should be sold or leased out.
The minister said the land belonged to railways was not owned by anybody's father, it belonged to the government of Pakistan. "The land mafia thinks railways' land is their father's property", he added.
Sheikh Rasheed told the Senate that railways losses stood at Rs30 billion in 2013 and went up to Rs41 billion, in 2018.
The minister said we would curtail the railways' expenses by 15%. "We will be auctioning off trains and wagons that have been standing stationary for the last 60 years", he told.
Furthermore,30 train stations will be upgraded and two new trains will operate from September 15. He also promised to increase the freight by 20%.
On August 28, Shiekh Rasheed said the economic condition of Pakistan Railways will be improved within 120 days, through effective and concrete measures. He said more attention will be given to target railway freight business. He said elevators will be installed at major stations to facilitate the elderly citizens.
