Islamabad: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Railways, chaired by Rai Hassan Nawaz Khan, has called for the immediate commencement of the Mainline-1 (ML-1) project. This announcement was made by a news source on September 25.
As per details, the committee instructed the relevant authorities to expedite the completion of necessary documentation and procedures to ensure a prompt start. During the meeting, it was revealed that Phase-I of the ML-1 project is expected to commence by the end of this year or early next year, with a projected completion timeline of five years.
In a briefing to the committee, Divisional Superintendents from Pakistan Railways (Lahore, Mughalpura, Peshawar, and Rawalpindi) highlighted challenges related to land encroachments and the leasing of Railways property. They reported facing obstacles due to a lack of cooperation from district administrations during anti-encroachment operations.
The committee expressed dissatisfaction with the non-cooperation and recommended engaging provincial governments for stronger support in these efforts. Additionally, the committee directed officers attending the meeting via Zoom to be physically present at future meetings. Prominent members of the committee included Ramesh Lal, Waseem Qadir, Sadiq Ali Memon, and others.
