KARACHI, April 29: The Pakistan railway has started transporting required material, including sleepers and rails to Khokhrapar to convert the meter gauge line into broad gauge for opening Khokhrapar-Monabao train service between the two neighboring countries.

“The material for about five kilometer railway line has so far arrived at Khokhrapar from the Pakistan railway factories,” official sources in PR told PPI.

It would require 2,21,600 sleepers and 22,750 rails, each 36ft. long weighing 90 pounds, to replace the Mirpurkhas-Khokhrapar 135km long meter gauge with broad gauge line. The government has already allocated Rs.01 billion for the project, sources said.

The authorities have planned to lay 20km railway line in a month so that the task could be completed by Dec 31 this year to start the train service in January 2006.

During the eight-month period, the authorities would also complete the repair and renovation of seven railway stations, namely Jamrao, Shadi Pali, Saeendad, Pithoro, Dhoro Naro, Chhore and Khokhrapar.

The 135km railway line from Mirpurkhas to zero-point would pass through 130 bridges of which five are the major bridges over Mithrao canal, Jamrao canal, Thar canal and Left Bank Out-fall Drain.

The sources said that the train would run between Karachi and zero point Khokhrapar covering the distance in five hours.—PPI