LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday sought reply from chairperson of the Pakistan railways by August 7 on a petition challenging the closure of six passenger trains.
Chief Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif during the proceedings maintained that mostly the poor travelled by these trains and the authorities should not discontinue the service simply because of financial losses. Sharif pointed out that the PIA, the Pakistan Steel Mills and several other public corporations were also facing losses but none had been shut down.
Rana Shaukat, the general secretary of the Pakistan Railway Union, in his petition stated that five train services – Mehran Express, Sialkot Express, Sakhi Express, Tezrao Express and Chiltan Express – have been closed in view of losses faced by the railway authorities. The petition quoted Shaukat as saying that the decision has added to the woes of those travelling by these trains daily. Instead of coming up with a strategy to make up for the losses, the authorities had chosen to add to the number of unemployed. The petitioner prayed to the court to order resumption of the services.
Earlier, the railway authorities announced plans to close Shalimar Express by July 29.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 27th, 2010.
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