MULTAN: There was a time when the Pakistan Railways used to run 450 passenger trains and 400 cargo trains on a daily basis. The cargo trains, which were the main source of income for the Railways, have stopped running now, with the authorities citing a shortage of engines as the cause for this state of affairs. This means that hardly any revenue is being earned by the Railways.
The fact is that at least 345 new train coaches were deliberately converted into scrap, which led to the shortage of locomotives and coaches. This shows that the activities of the Pakistan Railways are being sabotaged as part of a conspiracy. On June 12, the railway minister cancelled eight important train services but there is no one to hold him accountable for his actions. The Pakistan Railways, which has seven divisions, a headquarter office in Lahore, the Railway Board and ministry offices in Islamabad, employs 1,700 officers and runs only 76 trains.
The inefficiency of the Pakistan Railways is all the more apparent when one considers the fact that the trains it has contracted out to the private sector manage to maintain their punctuality and provide service to a large number of people.
This campaign that has been started to apparently destroy the Pakistan Railways must be stopped immediately. Questions must be raised in the National Assembly and Senate about its performance in order to save this facility, which once diligently served the poor.
Sher Muhammad Khan
Published in The Express Tribune, August 9th, 2012.
