Ahsan Iqbal Reveals Plan to Revive Pakistan Railways

Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has announced a comprehensive plan to modernize Pakistan's Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway corridor, emphasizing its critical role in boosting trade, freight capacity, and regional connectivity. During a presentation at the Development Partners Dialogue in Mongolia, Iqbal unveiled the ML-1 modernization project and shared updates on the Karachi-Rohri section.

Spanning 1,726 kilometers from Karachi to Peshawar, ML-1 transports 76% of the country's passenger traffic and an impressive 98% of its freight. Iqbal underscored the importance of this project as a national economic priority, given its significance to the country's trade and overall economic growth. The upgraded ML-1 will increase line capacity from 34 to 120 train pairs, elevate passenger speeds to up to 160 kilometers per hour, and boost freight speeds from 30 to 80 kilometers per hour.

Consequently, the travel time between Karachi and Rohri is expected to decrease from eight hours to approximately four and a half hours. This upgraded corridor is projected to accommodate an annual freight demand of around 21 million tons by 2035. Iqbal highlighted the Karachi-Rohri section as the most advanced part of the ML-1 modernization plan, with an estimated cost of approximately $2.5 billion.

The Asian Development Bank is spearheading the financing efforts, while the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, World Bank, Islamic Development Bank, and European Investment Bank are co-financing partners. Project readiness financing has been secured, engineering work has been initiated, and procurement and financing processes are progressing.

The minister further revealed that the government is in the process of developing a financing plan for the remaining sections of the ML-1 corridor, stretching from Rohri to Peshawar. Iqbal stressed that the Karachi-Rohri project should be viewed as the initial step towards the complete modernization of the Karachi-Peshawar corridor, rather than as an isolated initiative.

He urged the focus to shift towards implementation, maintaining financing continuity, and securing funding for the remaining sections to ensure ML-1 operates as a seamless, high-capacity railway corridor linking the two major cities.