150th Anniversary of Railways in Pakistan : ALL THINGS PAKISTAN

Owais Mughal

Today, May 13, 2011, is the 150th anniversary of railways in Pakistan as the first track that became functional in areas which now comprise Pakistan was inaugurated on May 13, 1861 (this seems to be the season for 150th anniversaries!).

The photo above shows railway tunneling in Bolan Pass. The photo is credited to Agha Waseem.

The section that was inaugurated on this day 150 years ago was the 173 km long track between Karachi City and Kotri. At ATP we’ve already covered the inaugural event with a dedicated post (here) therefore I will not go in too much detail. I’ll rather delve into what Pakistan Railways could’ve been and what it could still be.

Following is an advertisement of Pakistan Railway which was published on the 1953-54 year book of PR by the Railway Division, Government of Pakistan.

I believe most of our readers know that Pakistan Railway is one department which has been in red for several years. Infrastucture at several places is literally 150 years old with a dire need of rehabilitation. Rolling stock has become a laughing stock with failing engines and aged coaches.

The photo below shows an all-steel French rake of 8-Down Tezgam on its maiden run at Lahore in 1953. Tezgam has a Karachi-Rawalpindi route.

What needs to happen in my opinion is the immediate rehabilitatation of track starting with Karachi-Peshawar and Sukkur-Quetta-Zahidan routes. Freight and cargo should be handled by railway instead of road transport because that is where the sustainable income for Railway can come from. I am sure it is easier said than done because over the years road and highway infrastructure in Pakistan has become pretty decent where as Railways in comparison has declined. Therefore why would a trader or a company move its freight business to railways unless Railways can better itself over road transport and provide a healthy competition. Since Railways is a Govt owned department therefore patronage from Government will be needed for its upgrade just like National Highway authority has successfully done for major highways in Pakistan.

Following is another historic photo showing an all steel coach from France getting unloaded at one of the new jetties of Karachi Port in 1952.

One more aspect that I want to talk about is the tremendous potential of tourism that Pakistan Railway has to offer. Several sections of Pakistan Railway especially those in Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa and Baluchistan are Engineering and architectural marvels that can bring tourism to Pakistan from far and away. Sounds like a far cry right now but with ample security and comfort for passengers it is indded a possibility. Up until few years ago Pakistan was also one of the last few destinations in the World with working steam engines. Tourists used to flock here from all over the world to take rides in last working steam trains. This tourism can be revived with some Government patronage – I would also go as far as to suggest something like Orient Express Pakistan on Zahidan-Quetta-Lahore-Peshawar route.

The photo above is a distant shot of a train between Sibi and Mach. The photo is credited to Agha Waseem.

On another related topic, couple of months ago there was news that the electrified rail section between Lahore and Khanewal is being torn down because there is not enough electricity and electric locomotives to run electric trains. This was a sad news that hit close to home. I know a cousin of mine who worked as an electrician on the construction of Lahore-Khanewal electrified section in the 1960s. So many people’s hardwork had gone in keeping this wonderful infrastructure built and kept. It feels sad to see it falling apart.

I want to request to our readers that whenever they take ride in Pakistani trains – take care of is rolling stock and infrastructure. No litter and no political graffity on trains. It is one heritage which is worth preserving and be proud of.

And another thing I am proud of is how over the years at ATP we have been able to build an encyclopedia of Pakistan Railways. Please see the list of our posts related to Pakistan Railways below and consult any of these for more information.

ATP’s Posts on Tramways and Railways in Pakistan:

1. Journeys to Remember: Quatta-Lahore by Rail in 1925.
2. Journeys to Remember: Karachi-Peshawar by Rail in 1950s
3. Ghora Tram: Historic Horse Tram Returns to Gangapur
4. Karachi Tramway of Yesteryears
5. Khyber Pass Railway
6. Bolan Pass Railway
7. The Trans-Balochistan Railway
8. Changa Manga Forest Railway
9. Lansdowne Bridge, Sukkur
10. Railway Bridge on Indus at Attock
11. Khojak Tunnel
12. Chappar Rift
13. Karachi Circular Railway (KCR)
14. Zhob Valley Railway (ZVR)
15. How the First Locomotive Reached Lahore
16. 3000hp Iron Horses of Pakistan
17. Lahore Rapid Mass Transit Rail Project
18. A Phoenix Rises From the Ashes of Bakhshapur
19. ek masla hai… A Railway Runs Through It
20. Ava Gardner in Lahore for Bhowani Junction
21. The Meter-Gauge of Sindh
22. Indus Flotilla Company
23. Karachi to Kotri: First Railways in Pakistan
24. Pakistan Railway on the West Bank of Indus
25. SPS#3157: Pakistan’s Gift to the People of Britain
26. List of Railway Stations of Pakistan

The improbable achievement of Mitt Romney.(News)

Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL) January 13, 2012 It is commonly argued that Mitt Romney has benefited from a weak Republican field, which is true. And that the attacks of his opponents have been late and diffuse. True, and true.

But the political accomplishment of Willard Mitt Romney should not be underestimated. The moderate, technocratic former governor of a liberal state is poised to secure the nomination of the most monolithically conservative Republican Party of modern history.

Some of this improbable achievement can be attributed to Romney’s skills as a candidate. In 14 debates, he delivered one gaffe (the $10,000 bet) and once lost his temper (with Rick Perry) — neither lapse particularly damaging. The slickest network anchor could not have done better.

Romney is the varsity — a far better candidate than, say, Bob Dole or John McCain. A Republican nominating process that swerved again and again toward silliness — alternately elevating for consideration Donald Trump, Michele Bachmann and Herman Cain — seems ready to settle on a serious, accomplished, credible candidate. Republicans, it turns out, are choleric and fractious — but not suicidal. site mitt romney news

The nominating process has also revealed Romney’s limitations. It would be awkward for anyone this stiff to pose as a working-class stiff, and Romney should not try. But if he gains the nomination, Romney’s rival in connecting with average voters will not be Bill Clinton. It will be professor Barack Obama. Again, Romney benefits from the luck of the draw.

Romney has paired his skills with a sophisticated political strategy. His campaign team learned something from the failures of four years ago. Last time, Romney flooded the early states with money and personal attention. In Iowa, his limited return on investment made him a political punch line. This time, Romney rationed both his money and his presence — lowering expectations and generating genuine enthusiasm when he finally arrived to campaign. When a late political opportunity presented itself — in the form of a persistently divided Republican field — the Romney campaign skillfully ramped up for a narrow win. Adding a victory in New Hampshire is an achievement that Ronald Reagan never managed as a challenger. mittromneynewsnow.net mitt romney news

Ideology has always been Romney’s main vulnerability. Running and winning in Massachusetts before running twice for the presidential nomination is a process best described by biologists — a story of adaptation and evolution.

Other candidates have naturally carried more vivid ideological messages. I come down on the empowerment side of the divide. But maybe, at this moment, the Republican Party doesn’t need a clear decision on its identity (which might not be possible anyway). Romney has this advantage: In supporting him, no Republican is called upon to surrender his or her deepest ideological convictions. Romney is temperamentally conservative but not particularly ideological. He seems to view the cultural and philosophic debates that drive others as distractions from the real task of governing — making systems work.

His competitors have attempted to portray Romney’s ideological inconsistency over time as a character failure. It hasn’t worked, mainly because Romney is a man of exemplary character — deeply loyal to his faith, his family and his country. In political matters, he is empirical and pragmatic. He studies problems, assesses risks, calculates likely outcomes. Those expecting Romney to be a philosophic leader will be disappointed. He is a management consultant, and a good one.

Has the moment of the management consultant arrived in American politics? In our desperate drought of public competence, Romney has a strong case to make.

Uzair says:

November 10th, 2011 11:47 pm

Its a pity to see railways in such a state, I fail to understand one thing, how an organization which is claimed to be in stages of huge modernization collapse in a blink (referring to how railways was performing or claimed to be 3 years back). I mean, such huge infrastructure if fails, takes a while, there is so much redundancy in such organizations and infrastructures. Pity that the transport system in Pakistan never evolved, be it the trains, airlines or the local city travel. I am from Rawalpindi and here nobody can get to work in a sane state if he uses the local wagon system. These organizations are self sustainable, I think the government should stop butting itself into these and let them go private like in United States and most parts of the world. The government here isn’t honest enough to be given this responsibility, on honest places like Germany or few Central European governments have railways under them, and honest as they are, the difference is clearly evident. The laters’ are moving to ICE II and ICE III projects where as we struggle with the technologies that they abandoned 40 years back.

P.S: @ Shez, happy to see an individual who does not fall for fallacy and weighs a person for his true worth. We should not forgive people who ruin our country that easy.

150th Anniversary of Railways in Pakistan

ATP Visitors

RELATED POSTS

ATP 4 Years Ago

ATP 3 Years Ago

ATP 2 Years Ago

ATP 1 Year Ago

ATP Discussions

Most Commented

Places

People

Poetry

Pakistaniat