Fozia Azam

Pakistan Railways earned Rs 28.263 billion revenue during the first six months (July-December) of the current fiscal year (2022-23) from its regular operations despite closures of train operations during the recent floods. “Expenditure during the same period was Rs52.990 billion. Out of the total expenditure, 35% was related to pensions and 33% to salaries of the employees,” according to information available with WealthPK.

During July-December FY23, Pakistan Railways received a subsidy of Rs21.750 billion as a federal aid grant. The net deficit for the period under review was Rs2.977 billion. The first half of the current financial year brought bad news for the department as unprecedented floods played havoc with railway infrastructure. It resulted in revenue loss for Pakistan Railways as train operations remained suspended for over 35 days.

Pakistan Railways prepared a business plan in January 2023 to increase its revenue and reduce expenditure through improved governance. The plan is being implemented in letter and spirit. The recent initiatives towards digitisation in form of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Railway Automated Booking and Travel Assistance (RABTA) also aim to increase efficiency and reduce the revenue expenditure gap.

The department has restarted its premium train service Green Line from January 2023, which consists of new coaches imported from China equipped with infotainment services like LEDs, Wi-Fi and public address systems. Pakistan Railways is also importing 230 passenger coaches from China. Out of these, 46 coaches have arrived from China while the rest would be assembled in the country through the transfer of technology.

Pakistan Railways is making efforts to transform itself into a profitable organisation despite financial constraints. The department has developed a two-pronged action plan that includes focusing on core activities and emphasising revenue generation through non-core activities.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk