Karachi:The provincial government of Sindh and the federal government have agreed to start trial runs of local trains within 12 kilometers during the next two months and then plan how to sync it with the modern circular railways system in the next phase.
This decision was taken here in a meeting between Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umer. They both were supported by their respective teams. The federal minister was assisted by Federal P and D Secretary Mathar Niaz, Habib-ur-Rehman Secretary Railways, Additional Secretary P and D Rafiq Chandna, Ameer Mohammad Project Director KCR, Imran Mishal DG Planning Railways, Arshad Salam Khatak DC Karachi.
The chief minister was assisted by Minister Transport Awais Qadir Shah, Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, Advocate General Sindh Salman Talibuddin, Chairman P and D M. Wasem, Administrator Karachi Iftikhar Shahalwalni, PSCM Sajid Jamal Abro, Commissioner Karachi Sohail Rajput, Secretary Finance Hassan Naqvi and Secretary Transport Sharik and Additional Secretary to CM Badaruddin Shaikh.
The meeting was held between the two governments to chalk out a strategy in respect of launching KCR projects as was decided in the CCI meeting and to implement the Supreme Court directives to start local train projects in the city of Karachi.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said that the KCR was commissioned in 1964 and remained effective till 1984. It was closed in 1999; as it lost its operational efficiency. He added that the Sindh government approved initial Feasibility/ PC-I for KCR revival in 2006 to be undertaken through JICA and revised Feasibility and PC1 was prepared by JICA which was approved by ECNEC in 2012 for $2.6 billion. The JICA remained engaged on the project from 2006 to 2012; but unfortunately, the earlier agreed financing arrangement could not materialize.
Murad Ali Shah said that given the stalemate on JICA financing; he took up the matter with the then prime minister on December 3, 2016 and requested him for inclusion of KCR under CPEC framework, Issuance of Sovereign Guarantee for the KCR Revitalization, handing Over of KUTC to the Sindh government for construction and management of KCR, handing Over Right Of Way (ROW) to KUTC-Sindh govt. He added that the Prime Minister approved all his requests and for handing over ROW a committee was formed to seek options on issue. “The KCR loop has an overlapping section of 12 kms with Pakistan Railways project ML-1 launched under CPEC framework.
Mr Shah said that he followed up the matter with the federal government throughout 2017 and 2018. “I personally followed up at every stage and has written a dozen letters to the federal government on the matter,” he said and added the ECNEC approved the project on Oct 6, 2017 for Rs.207.6 billion (US$ 1.97 billion) through Chinese Loan and the Administrative Approval of the project was issued by Sindh Transport and Mass Transit Dept on Nov 8, 2017. The chief minister said that when KCR was brought under the CPEC framework it was approved at a cost of $1.971 billion (Rs300bn) and was supposed to be completed within 36 months.
It may be noted that the length of the KCR project was 43.13 km, including 14.95 km on ground and 28.18 km elevated. It would have 24 stations and its per day ridership would be around 550,000. Mr Shah said that the KCR project was agreed in CPEC related JCC meeting on December 29, 2016. On November 22, 2017 the JCC confirmed that the KCR project is technically qualified and mature for implementation, he said and added on December 20, 2018 the importance of KCR was recognized and on Nov 5, 2019 it was decided that Pakistan would submit a financing request to the Chinese government. “After this no further progress could be attained,” he said.
Federal Minister Asad Umar said that the federal government was serious to start the KCR project at the earliest. The federal minister and the chief minister also discussed how to start local trains within the next few months and whether the local train system would sink in with the modern railway system of KCR.
The meeting decided to start local trains within a span of 12 kilometers from City station to SITE as a trial run within the next two month. It was also decided that a highly professional consultant would be hired to study how to sync the local train system with the modern KCR.
Secretary railways Habib-ur-Rehman gave a detailed briefing about the project of KCR and local train system and discussed various options to start the project. He disclosed a three phased plan under which construction of single line track, rolling of stock, deputation of human resource and operation were in the first phase. In the second phase, dualization of track, singling, fencing and flyovers/underpasses would be constructed. In the third phase, as said by the railway secretary modern urban rail-based Mass-transit, transaction advisory services for PPP mode, financial model and government model and cross subsidy model such as land commercialization would be undertaken.
Chairman P and D Sindh Mohammad Waseem said that all encroachments have been removed. The Sindh government would construct flyover/underpasses where necessary along with construction of fencing along the route. He also said that the provincial government would lay a sewerage system between Urdu college and Depot hill and make arrangements for proper disposal of industrial effluent from the SITE area.
In the conclusion, the chief minister said that the federal government has to decide whether the KCR would remain in the CPEC framework or not. “If the decision in the CPEC framework is in affirmative then necessary measures should be taken to acquire the loan for the project and if the decision comes out in negative then the other ways and means may be explored to start the project because the KCR is the only solution of the transport problem.”