Shahbaz thanks China for releasing Orange Line funds

CM says those opposing the project are against people’s welfare

LAHORE: Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has thanked the Chinese government and the Exim Bank of China for releasing the second instalment of funds for the Lahore Orange Line Metro Train project.

Speaking to assembly members from various districts who called on him on Friday, the chief minister said provision of funds was evidence of Chinese leaders’ trust in the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government. He said work on the project was underway at a quick pace.



He said the Chinese prime minister had called the scheme a gift for Pakistan. He said the government [through effective planning] had saved billions of rupees in the execution of the project. “The Orange Line Train project will prove a trendsetter in transport sector. Some political elements have been waging propaganda against the scheme,” the chief minister said.

He said a new chapter in Pakistan-China friendship would start with the completion of the project. He said those opposing the project were obstructing the prosperity of the common man. “The common man has the right to travel in comfortable public transport. The provincial government is providing the facility by starting projects like Metro Bus and Orange Line Train.”

Sharif said the government was spending billions of rupees on providing comfortable, safe and affordable transportation facilities to the people. He said the Orange Line project was the first of its kind in the country. It would change transport culture in the country, he said.

The chief minister said that initially 250,000 people would benefit from the train daily; the number would later rise to 500,000. He said the train would cover the distance that now takes 2.5 hour in only 45 minutes.

Syed Muhammad Ashiq Hussain, Mian Imtiaz, Nasir Iqbal, Shafqat Mahmood and Manshaullah Butt were present on the occasion.

Condolence



The chief minister expressed grief over the death of five members of a family in a road accident near Sahiwal. He sympathised with the bereaved families. He also sought a report about the accident.

Sharif also condoled with the family of nine people who died in a fire in Kuwait.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2^nd, 2016.