NA question hour: Railways minister paints dismal picture

PR debts stood at Rs58.7 billion in January, 2013, according to Bilour.

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan Railways was already in trouble when the current government took charge but its financial woes deepened in the past five years with a steep increase of Rs20 billion debts. Its losses also went up by Rs6 billion from 2008 to 2013.

Minister for Railways Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour informed the National Assembly on Monday that railways’ international and local debts stood at Rs58.7 billion in January, 2013, whereas it was Rs38 billion in March 2008.

The railways’ losses stood at Rs28.9 billion in March 2008 which increased by Rs6 billion to Rs34.1 billion in January 2013, the minister added.

“Give me locomotives, I will give you a profit-making Pakistan Railways,” said Bilour, while speaking on the floor of the house. He said the national carriage company was running on only 180 locomotives at present while it purchased none in the last five years. In March 2008, the total number of functional locomotives was 406. Shortage of locomotives was the major contributor in the decline in trade through railways, its mainstay for profit-making, Bilour told the house.

He said other factors such as increase in the prices of diesel, revenue losses, the law and order situation and increase in expenditure added to the railways overall dismal performance.

The government spent Rs211 billion in five years on the railways but its income remained Rs86 billion for the same period, the minister added. During the same period, the railways lost over 200,000 passengers due to delays in arrival and departure of trains. The loss of passengers resulted in Rs43 billion revenue losses, Bilour said in his written reply to a member’s question.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s exports to 22 European countries and the US has been decreasing since the past five years, Minister for Commerce Amin Fahim told the house in his written reply to a question.

He attributed the decrease to the law and order situation, war on terror and non-availability of gas and electricity, which has been contributing to a decline in Pakistan’s industrial and manufacturing sector’s performance.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 26^th, 2013.