Railways tries to get back on the rails

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Railways has decided to outsource the commercial management operations of passenger trains by inviting expressions of interest (EoIs) via a publication.

This was stated by the senior officials of the Pakistan Railways, while briefing a meeting of the subcommittee of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Railways, which was held under the chairmanship of Chaudhary Hamid Hameed, here on Tuesday.

Explaining the reasons behind the move, the officials said that the decision will be aimed at reducing financial losses. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government since 2019 is trying to outsource the commercial operations of the railways but so far has not succeeded.

The officials said that the move will not only improve the revenue collections of the PR but will also get rid of corruption allegations time and again levelled against various officials involved in dealing with cash collection.

The officials said that PR was facing a serious shortage of staff and the move will also enable the management to deploy officials involved in ticketing activity to other jobs.

Questions raised over auction policy of Pakistan Railways

The officials said that in Peshawar division, 1,180 Pakistan Railway-owned land was encroached by various people.

He said that 831 acres were encroached for agriculture purposes, while the rest was commercial land situated within main cities. They said that the Railways was making all out efforts to vacate the land but the encroachers were getting stay orders from various courts, which was a serious hurdle in acquiring the land.

The chairman committee asked the Railways officials to file a petition in the Supreme Court of Pakistan in this connection, so that the encroached lands of Pakistan railways could be vacated and used for the betterment of the department.

Meanwhile, following an increase in fuel prices, the PR has notified an increase of 10 percent in Rail fares for passengers traveling across the country from November.

'Fair bidding' process: Railways outsources commercial management of nine trains

The Pakistan Railways, on Tuesday, announced an increase in ticket prices for passenger trains. The fares for freight trains have, on the other hand, been hiked by five percent. PR officials said that that the new rates for passenger and cargo trains will come into effect from November 1 and November 5, respectively.

A 10 percent increase in fares means that Rs1,000 ticket will now cost Rs1,100. A person traveling from Karachi to Lahore in economy class for Rs1,500 will have to purchase the ticket for Rs1,650 from November. The decision comes amid a price hike of most commodities nationwide. According to the Railway Department, the increase in fares is a result of the surge in petrol prices.

Earlier this month, the government increased the petrol price by Rs10.49 taking the commodity to a record high of Rs137.79. High-Speed Diesel price has been increased by Rs12.49 to Rs134.48 per liter.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021