Pak okays $7.2 bn rail line upgrade project under CPEC

Islamabad, June 7

Pakistan has approved the strategic $7.2 billion railway line upgrade project between Peshawar and Karachi under the CPEC, paving the way for the final negotiations with China for the finance, a media report said on Sunday.

India not in favour of corridor

• The approval of the project to upgrade the 1,872-km railway track from Peshawar to Karachi is a milestone for the second phase of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
• India has objected to the CPEC as it is being laid through the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The approval of the project to upgrade the 1,872-km railway track from Peshawar to Karachi is a big milestone for the second phase of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), said Lieutenant General (retired) Asim Saleem Bajwa, chairman of the CPEC Authority.

The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on Saturday approved the Pakistan Railways’ Mainline-I (ML-1) Project, The Express Tribune reported.

The approval by the key government body has set the stage for the final negotiations with China for financing the project and talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to address its concern over a big loan from Beijing.

Earlier, the Pakistan Railways proposed the construction of the project at a cost of $9.2 billion. However, the transport and communication wing of the planning ministry reduced the cost by $2 billion, the report said.

India has objected to the CPEC as it is being laid through the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. — PTI