Railways suffer Rs 42.67b loss

ISLAMABAD—The Pakistan Railway faced financial loss amounting to Rs. 42.673 billion during last five years of incumbent Government due to negligence of authorities concerned and corruption being underway in the department.
The department witnessed major loss in tenure of Federal Railway Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed, which was Rs. 24.10 billion despite his claims to make Pakistan Railway profitable. The losses sustained by Pakistan railway was Rs. 7.80 billion during financial years of 2002-2003, Rs. 5.79 billion during 2003-04, Rs. 3.29 billion during 2004-05, Rs. 11.26 billion during 2005-06 and 14.47 billion during 2006-07, sources in the railway ministry told Online on Sunday.
The department faced financial loss amounting to Rs. 13.59 billion during 2002-04 in tenure of Ghous Buksh Mahar first railway minister in incumbent Government, Rs. 14.55 billion during 2004-06 in tenure of Shamim Haider second railway minister and Rs. 20.10 billion in tenure of ongoing Federal Minister for Railway Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, sources added. Sources said that the main reason behind the loss faced by the department was increase in pay/allowance, increase in fuel expenditure, renovation of trains, luxuries of officers, corruption, advertisement and wrong use of budget. The railway administration has failed to change signal system introduced by British, repairing of railways and overhauling of railway stations. No ministers of incumbent Government had bothered to end corruption and make the department profitable.—Agencies