ISLAMABAD, May 29: The Senate standing committee on railways has expressed its concern over the frequent incidents of derailment of trains and directed the railway authorities to focus their attention on the improvement and proper maintenance of tracks in the country.

The committee also directed the railway authorities to expedite the process of laying track to Gwadar with a view to connect the port with the rest of the country.

The committee, which met at the Parliament House on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Senator Kamil Ali Agha, expressed these views while having a briefing on the budgetary position during the current fiscal year, plans for rehabilitation, improvement and modernisation of the existing tracks and the financial outcome of trains launched during the last one year, a press release said.

It underlined the need for making railway “a passenger friendly entity” and called for introducing policies aimed at attracting more passengers. The members of the committee were happy to know about the decrease in the annual deficit of the railways and appreciated the initiatives taken during the last one year which have increased its capability.

Regarding the award of contracts in the railways, the meeting suggested that public-private partnership should be encouraged and that the local manufacturers should be given preference while awarding contracts as the government has chalked out a policy to promote indigenisation and import substitution. The committee also suggested that the PC-I of Bostan-Zhob-D.I. Khan sections should be revised.

Earlier, Railway Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad informed the committee about the steps taken to improve the system. He said old trains were being rehabilitated and ten new trains had been inducted during the last one year.

He said E-ticketing system and reservation of seats through credit cards would soon be introduced to facilitate the passengers. He also apprised the members of the steps taken by the government to improve the rail system in Balochistan and the rest of the country.

The meeting was assured that all-out efforts were being made to reduce the losses and introduce policies aimed to make the railways a passenger-friendly organisation.

The meeting was attended by senators Mir Mohammad Naseer Mengal, Engineer Rashid Ahmad Khan, Naeem Hussain Chattha, Abdul Ghaffar Qureshi, Saeed Ahmed Hashmi, Nawab Mohammad Ayaz Khan Jogezai, Mohammad Saleh Shah, and Dr Mohammad Ismail Buledi.