Daily Times

Pakistan Railways was putting maximum effort to complete the reconstruction and renovation work on the strategic Sibi-Harnai railway track with the assistance of the National Logistics Cell (NLC).

Hopefully, it would be operational by the end of next month. “The railway track was made dysfunctional after a series of bomb blasts which damaged as many as 22 steel bridges in the highly rugged and inaccessible area,” an official in the Ministry of Railways told APP. He said the track was badly damaged in 2006 and so far about 99 per cent of the reconstruction work of the project was completed and the remaining work would be completed soon.

The official said that Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique had also taken a keen interest in the projects and directed the concerned official to complete the project at the earliest. In March 2016, he said that a contract for rehabilitation and restoration of the Sibbi-Harnai railway track along with the up-gradation of railway stations was awarded to the NLC as no other construction firm agreed to undertake the project due to the prevalent security situation and enormity of the task.

During the initial survey of the track, the official said it was found that 22 steel bridges of different sizes were destroyed and required replacement. He said in addition, massive river protection work was to be undertaken to save the infrastructure. The quantum of work, non-availability of road access, and requisite resources made the project a formidable challenge, he added.

The official said undertaking the project with the sincerity of purpose and utmost sense of duty, NLC officers, engineers, and construction workers braved harsh weather conditions and a hostile security environment and subsequently completed 99 per cent of the rehabilitation works in record time. The major task was the fabrication of steel bridges. The steel bridges were fabricated in Karachi and were transported to the project site after being painstakingly assembled by NLC engineers in a befitting manner, he added. He said a total of nine railway stations along with tracks had been upgraded by NLC engineers including the reconstruction of Harnai Railway Station and a complete renovation of Sibi Railways Station, which could be regarded as the finest railway station in Balochistan.