Earlier today, Prime Minister Imran Khan issued a statement saying that the Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway project will make it easier for train passengers to travel from Karachi to Lahore in just seven hours, and vice versa.
During his speech at the inauguration, the Prime Minister announced that with an investment of $6 billion, the project is by far the largest project in the history of the railway sector in the country.
The Main Line-1 project is part of the growth of the China-Pak Economic Corridor (CPEC) railway sector and from an investment point of view, the largest railway project ever till date in Pakistan. Although the ML-1 track runs from Karachi to Peshawar, the other proposals for the railway project that are part of the major development of the rail sector include:
- At a cost of $4.5 billion, a 1,328 km line from Jacobabad and Quetta to Gwadar will connect Gwadar to China.
- A 130 km line to Hyderabad from Karachi.
- On the Main Line-2, a 560 km line from Quetta to Kotla Jam.
- A 65 km line from Peshawar to Torkham, Afghanistan.
- A 128 km line from Quetta to Chaman.
- A 285 km line from Nowshera and Dargai to Swat.
- The construction of the Karachi Circular Railway (operational soon)
In addition, Imran Khan claimed that the railway sector is essential to Pakistan’s national welfare. He announced that Rs.300 million was spent by the government on restoring and renovating the Hassan Abdal Railway Station, which had been ignored for 127 years. He also added that the railway station has been elevated to two floors and now has a good canteen and a water supply that is clean.
The Prime Minister also stated that travel and tourism are one of Pakistan’s biggest missed opportunities and the country will achieve wonders with the restoration of the tourism sector. “There will be no need to obtain loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) if we are working on tourism,” he said.
