13 June 2004	Sunday	24 Rabi-us-Saani 1425

NOWSHERA, June 12: Federal Minister for Railways Ghaus Bakhsh Mahar has said that Pakistan has completed the survey for laying a railway track up to Kandahar and Chaman and onward to Central Asia and sent the case to the Afghan government for perusal.

He was speaking at a function held on the occasion of handing over a 3000-horsepower rail engine to the Pakistan Railways at the Locomotive Factory in Risalpur here on Friday.

It was the second of 69 engines beingbuilt at the Pakistan Locomotive Factory with the joint efforts of Pakistani and Chinese engineers.

Mr Mahar said the Afghan government had given its assent to the project, adding that now the survey was being carried out from Kandahar to Turkmenistan. Once this project was made feasible, it would be linked with the Gawadar port, he said, adding that Islamabad had told Kabul that the project up to Kandahar would be completed in two and a half years.

The minister ruled out the privatization of the locomotive factory, saying that the PR was being converted intoa corporation which would improve its financial health.

He said the government was trying to improve the railway department, for which, he said, 300 engines were required.