05 December 2004	Sunday	22 Shawwal 1425

KARACHI, Dec 4: Funding options vis-a-vis the revival of the Karachi Circular Railway are likely to be discussed at a meeting to be held on Monday in Islamabad, transport department officials said.

The meeting, to be chaired by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, would finalize the strategy to revitalize the project in the light of the recommendations of the task force on the KCR, formed by the premier, the officials said.

Minister of State for Railways Ishaque Khakwani, Sindh Minister for Transport Adil Siddiqui and EDO Transport of the city government, Karachi, Dr Tahir Soomro are members of the task force which was directed by Mr Aziz to revive the KCR as soon as possible.

The Sindh government had prepared an action plan to revive the service by January 15. The plan was submitted to the federal authorities at a meeting in Islamabad on November 16 in pursuance of the decision of an earlier meeting, held on October 28.

Mr Adil Siddiqui told Dawn on Saturday that the task force had submitted several options for the restoration of the KCR operation which required Rs6 billion.

"We have submitted different options to the committee. We have given an option to initiate the service on the existing tracks after they would be repaired, or the entire tracks be replaced with new ones, and similar other options," he said.

The committee would discuss the options and finalize the funding of the project. As soon as the funds were released, the working on the tracks would begin. "We will work on war-footings and try to restart the circular trains by January 15," the minister asserted.

He said that the option of the soft loan, earlier recommended by the provincial and city governments, was turned down as it was not forwarded after completing the procedural documentation. He said that the meeting of the committee would deliberate upon the launching of the project on the basis of 'build, operate and transfer (BOT)'.

The minister said that there were seven companies already pre-qualified for the project. The meeting would discuss their offers on the BOT basis. "We will not invite fresh tenders as already the re-launching of the project had suffered an inordinate delay.

He said that Pakistan Railway had extended its cooperation to the provincial government and also promised all possible technical assistance.

Sources said that progress and possibility of launching the KCR operation on the existing tracks by January 15 next year with an initially estimated cost of Rs1.5 billion would also be reviewed in the upcoming meeting.

Besides, they said, notices were also being served to those who had encroached upon the land along the KCR tracks.

The sources said that all 14 stations of the KCR would be given to private entrepreneurs on BOT basis. The government is planning to start repairing and upgrading 22 level-crossings across the city.

The sources pointed out that the provincial government had already spent more than Rs3 billion to build flyovers on level-crossings in the city for an uninterrupted flow of the circular train.

The KCR operation was suspended on Dec 15, 1999 after the Pakistan Railway refused to operate the service anymore due to recurring losses.

Referring to the failure of the KCR service, the source said that non-extension of KCR tracks in the past, lack of resource planning and commitment, irregular service and lack of integration in road transport were among the main causes. The KCR was planned in 1952 and completed in 1964. While at the peak of its service, it operated 104 trains every day, generating annual revenue of Rs6 million through ticket sales.