Pakistan Railways has submitted the updated PC-1 of Main Line-1 (ML-1) project to the ministry of planning, development and special initiatives. The revised PC-1 features downward revision of overall cost from US$9.248 billion to US$9.172 billion.
This paves the way for the formal initiation of work on the project after its approval by Executive Committee National Economic Council (ECNEC) by April this year. According to details, Pakistan Railways will take charge of managing the project with a new administrative structure and more efficient human resources. The project will create as many as 100,000 jobs.
The ML-1 will be completed in three phases, and the up-gradation of the existing track along with laying of double line will make it possible to run train at the speed of 120 to 160 kilometres per hour. The project, therefore, will bring about efficiency in terms of time, fuel consumption and environment.
The completion of the project will reduce travel time significantly between main cities such as Karachi and Lahore (10 hours), Islamabad and Lahore (2.5 hours), Lahore and Multan (3 hours), Peshawar and Islamabad (1.5 hours), and Karachi and Hyderabad (80 minutes).
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