THE network of railroads in the Pakistan-India region was established in the second half of 1800. The track paths were widely spread in various parts of the region. Villagers at that time used to settle in sparse localities. For their comfort and access to their doorstep, the network of the transport system was branched out to reach far-off areas.

Costs included the material used for the railroad or track, complete infrastructure, fixtures, equipment and tools to run the system smoothly.

As time passed, villages of yore developed into modern cities but a few stations are now ruined due to lack of maintenance. There is a need to monitor and study the measure of the lost property of the Pakistan Railways. There are many offline tracks in Sindh, southern Punjab, KP and Balochistan. Starting from the main station to their destination, these tacks are heavily damaged. No one uses them.

Most of the track lines are buried under ground, passing through the houses, and have no end. Such tracks and associated roads and the rail network system demand the attention of the government.

The heavy machinery installed once along the initially established rail tracks, building of associated past stations, colonies once built for railway employees, are now unplugged from the main stream of the network.

The departments concerned should seriously work to turn this treasure of Pakistan Railways to people’s advantage.

M. JAHANGIR KHAN Karachi