Bilour warns of suspending train service in Punjab

 

 

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Railways Haji Ghulam Ahmed Bilour on Wednesday warned that train service could be terminated in the Punjab if attacks on trains continued in the province.

Holding the Punjab government, Wapda and interior ministry responsible for the chaos, Bilour said they should pay damages to the Pakistan Railways for the destruction to the equipment and the trains.

The minister said that after consulting Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani over the subject, the train service could be stopped in the Punjab if the attacks continued. “Attacks on the trains in the Punjab is a conspiracy against the Punjab government,” the minister said while talking to journalists after conducting a surprise visit to the Carriage Factory and the Rawalpindi Railway Station.

The minister said that the elements who damaged the government’s property were the enemies of the country and would be dealt with iron hands. Opposing to the notion of privatisation of the Pakistan Railways, the minister asked Wapda to look into the matter and fix those who were responsible for loadshedding across country.

He also asked the Punjab government to sort out elements involved in the riots and attacks on trains. “It is common responsibility of the provincial government and interior ministry to maintain law and order in the country to tackle untoward incidents in future,” he opined. Bilour said that except India, the Railways department throughout the world was going into deficit

The  News:Thursday, July 23, 2009