Syed Marwan Shah

The Pakistan Railways (PR) has reclaimed 18 kanals of land in Peshawar valuing millions of rupees, reports WealthPK. The railways' administration has conducted a number of anti-encroachment operations in various parts of Peshawar. Besides the removal of encroachments on 18 kanals of land, 135 stores were also shut down for failing to pay their dues. The Pakistan Railways recently found 9,986 acres of land encroached upon by people and various government agencies countrywide. About 3,287 acres have been encroached upon in Punjab, 832 acres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 5,180 acres in Sindh, and 687 acres in Balochistan.

The railway authorities have also decided to step up the ongoing anti-encroachment campaign across the country in order to reclaim their land from various people, organizations, and even commercial enterprises that had been using it for residential, commercial, and agricultural purposes for decades. Talking to WealthPK, Saddam Hussein, a research economist at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), claimed that the Pakistan Railways (PR) owned over 168,000 acres.

This land, if utilized properly through the public-private partnership model, can not only help mitigate the country's financial crisis, but also earn huge profits for the department. This would be a sustainable model, enabling the railway department to stand on its own feet. "However, our bureaucracy is unable to think creatively. Even our train stations are enormous. Why not work with the private businesses to create contemporary cafés, shops, advertising screens, etc.?

In addition to increasing income from the train operations, this would also improve the atmosphere at the stations," he continued. Saddam said retrieving the land from encroachers could also earn additional revenues. According to a WealthPK study, the Pakistan Railways had a total of 167,690 acres of land of which 90,326 acres were in Punjab, 39,428 acres in Sindh, 28,228 acres in Balochistan, and 9,708 acres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. For many years, land invasion had been a significant problem for the department due to which many businesses avoided investing in the area.

When the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) first visited Pakistan to discuss investment in the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR), the ministry was unable to retrieve the required piece of land, even in Karachi, to enable the KCR to operate. Recovering land is a positive indication for the country's economy, especially in light of recent developments like the purchase of new coaches and plans to modernize the railways.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk