Lahore: The government of Punjab is set to inaugurate the Orange Line Metro Train (OLMT) project on December 10 — in order to comply with the judgement of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, a news source reported. However, as per the publication, the project will not be opened to the public till April 2020.
The Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar will travel the full distance of OLMT’s 27-kilometre track on the day of the inauguration ceremony. According to the reports, the project cannot be opened to the public at this time because the safety audit for the project’s building framework, electricity system, and other parts is yet to be conducted. The companies in charge of this audit have requested additional time of about two to three months to complete their work.
Moreover, according to the sources, the Punjab government is also yet to sign the agreement required to manage the operations of OLMT for the next 11 years, under the joint venture (JV) of Chinese and South Korean companies. This is because, the JV is currently demanding a fee of around PKR 450 million per month for the management of the train system, and the Punjab government is beginning to have reservations about agreeing to their stipulations.
