Islamabad
Pakistan Railways is likely to float tenders for dualization of Karachi-Peshawar track Main Line-I (ML-I) during the current week under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. Tenders would be limited to seek interest of Chinese firms since the project would be funded and executed under the CPEC, official sources in the Ministry of Railways told APP.
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) had already approved the project which would bring revolution in Pakistan Railways and create a number of job opportunities, they said. Giving detail of the ML-I, they said project consisted of three packages. Under package-I, the existing tracks between Lala Musa and Lahore, Lahore and Multan and Nawab Shah and Rohri would be replaced and upgraded.
They said the package-II consisted of upgrade of the railway track between Lala Musa and Rawalpindi, Nowshera-Peshawar and Hyderabad-Karachi sections while the package-III included upgradation of remaining chunks of the main-line, including Multan-Khanewal to Sukkur. Under the project, rehabilitation and construction of bridges, provision of modern signaling and telecom systems, replacing level crossings with underpasses and flyovers, fencing of track, establishment of dry port near Havelian and upgradation of Walton Training Academy (Lahore) would be carried out.
The project, the sources said, was aimed at increasing train speed from existing 80-90 km/hour to 160 km/hour, thereby reducing the train journey between major cities like Karachi-Rawalpindi from 22hrs to 10 hrs and Rawalpindi – Lahore from five hrs to three hours only, they added.
About the initiatives taken by the incumbent government, they said Pakistan Railways introduced live tracking system, provided free Wi-Fi facility at major stations as well as initiated establishment of state of the art command.—APP
