ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Railways Muhammad Azam Khan Swati on Monday said that he and his team were fully determined to take Pakistan Railways to new heights of glory as billions of rupees would be generated from branding of trains.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of train branding here, followed by a press conference, the minister said that railways and the corporate sector entered into a collaboration based on a transparent and win-win situation.
He said that a branding policy based on security and longevity, as required by every businessperson or investor, would soon be approved under his own supervision.
“Without the cooperation of corporate sector, it would be impossible to make Pakistan Railways a profitable entity,” he said assuring the corporate community that the present contracts would not be affected from any policy changes of the future governments.
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Azam Swati said that they were striving hard to utilise the dormant resources for the uplift and betterment of Pakistan Railways and said that railways were the key to economic development.
He also said that it was equally important to prevent leakages because of corruption. He said that his government had made the railways police independent so that they could perform their duties without any political pressure or hindrance. “This would also help prevent theft of railways scrap which was going on for 70 years,” he added.
He said that independent Railways Police would also be able to apprehend the black sheep within the railways department without having to fear any backlash.
The minister said that despite the fact that he had been in the seat for only one year and three months, his performance would speak when the Profit and Loss Account of Pakistan Railways would appear before the public on June 30, 2022.
Swati said that the fares and freight charges would also be reduced once the railways started making increased profit. He also expressed hope to start soon the passenger train connecting Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul-Moscow and Central Asia.
Almost Rs85 million have been received by the ministry as token money from three different firms interested to invest in branding initiative of the Railways, he apprised.
