Railway losses rise to Rs14.47bn: Salary hike one of the reasons: minister
By Iftikhar A. Khan
ISLAMABAD, Aug 10: The Senate was told on Friday that the Pakistan Railways had suffered over Rs14.47 billion losses during 2006-07 as against losses of over Rs1.12 billion in 2005-06.
In a written reply, federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmad said that a 15-per cent raise in salaries of the staff had an impact of Rs740 million while the increase in pension cost the government Rs578 million.
He said other reasons included an increase in fuel prices, Rs372.939 million; loss of revenue because of frequent suspensions of passenger and freight trains from August to September 2006 as a result of a collapse of bridge between Karachi and Kotri, Rs1500 million; expenditure on revival of the Karachi Circular Railway, Rs32.206 million; expenditure on spares and assemblies and common-use items relating to train operations — Rs2219.209 million; repairs of bridges over the entire system, Rs135 million; payment of arrears of Sui Gas bills, Rs105 million; foreign debt servicing, Rs4448.624 million; and domestic debt servicing Rs4343.502 million, including repayment of Rs3000 million overdraft to the State Bank of Pakistan.
The Railways had suffered losses of Rs7.83 billion in 2002-2003 which were brought down to 5.79 billion in 2003-2004. The losses were further brought down to Rs3.29 billion in 2004-2005.
WOMEN’S HARASSMENT: Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Kamil Ali Agha told the house during the question hour that 48 cases of women harassment had been registered against police officials over the past two years.
He said 30 cases had been registered in Sindh, 15 in Punjab and three Islamabad.
He said out of 30 cases in Sindh, 19 were under investigation while 10 had been sent to court.
In Punjab, four police officers were suspended, five cases sent to the court and two cases remained under investigation. In Islamabad, all three cases were under trial in courts, he said.
The house was told that 7025 cases of violence against women had been registered across the country in 2005.
He said incidents of domestic violence, honour killings and sexual violence had come down.
The incidence of crime put under the category of ‘other violence’ had, however, increased from 2214 in 2005 to 6171 in 2006, he said, adding that the number of harassment cases at work place, which stood at 128 in 2005, had gone up to 277 in 2006.
He said the government had taken several measures to control the gender-based violence in the country. He said police officers had been sensitised on human rights issues and a round-the-clock reporting centre for women established in Islamabad, and a woman police officer posted there to register FIRs.
The provincial home departments, he said, had been asked to replicate the model.
He said the Ministry of Interior had issued detailed instructions to provincial governments to take steps to provide adequate response from law-enforcement agencies to gender-based violence. He said some laws had been passed against honour killings and various other discriminatory practices against women.
