LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI)was responsible for inordinate delay in timely completion of orange line metro train project and hoped that people will take revenge of this delay in the upcoming general elections.
“Niazi Sahib claims that I am dangerous. He should wait and see that how dangerous I am. If an opportunity is accorded after the elections, blue line metro train will be constructed from Bhaati to airport,” the chief minister said while addressing a public gathering at Laxmi Chowk after the test run of orange line metro train. He said that PML-N government has taken a number of steps for providing cost-effective and comfortable traveling facilities to the people. Orange line metro train and metro bus service projects have been completed for the benefits of the common man, he added.
“Imran Niazi should have developed educational institutions and healthcare facilities in the KP as he had begged votes by raising the slogans of cricket world cup and Shaukat Khanum. But he devastated the province and tried to obstruct the development projects aimed at welfare of the masses. Now, the people have to take revenge of undue delay in this public welfare project by drowning the ship of the PTI in the coming elections,” Shehbaz said.”Zardari, who is responsible for ruining Sindh, has resurfaced in a new shape and now Bilawal House and Banigala have emerged as conjoined twins. They both are united now: one is having a bat while the other is holding an arrow. But when lion will roar, they will not be seen anywhere,” he said.”They vilify me for developing physical infrastructure including bridges and roads. Niazi Sahib, it may be true that I have developed bridges but you let the bridges to fall there. And when dengue attacked KP, you climbed to the mountains of Nathiagali to enjoy seclusion, he maintained. We have developed new bridges, roads, institutions and hospitals in Punjab and if an opportunity is accorded then these projects will also be started in Sindh, Balochistan and KP,” he added.
Shehbaz said that if orange line project had not been delayed, work would have started on the blue line project. He said if people gave PML-N another chance, the blue line project will be launched after the elections. He said that a huge amount of Rs 75 billion has been saved in the orange line metro train project. “I put a question to NAB that it digs everything up and tries to find out even the invisible. It should, at least, praise the saving of Rs 75 billion of the nation’s money,” he added.
“According to Niazi, I am more dangerous than Nawaz Sharif. I ask him if it has transpired to him now? Move forward and I shall let you know that how dangerous I am! With the grace of Allah Almighty, we will put your political career to an end,” he said.
He said thousands of megawatts of electricity generation projects have been installed and a network of motorways has been spread under the leadership of Nawaz Sharif. He said the country will further develop in the next five years.
Initially, the orange line metro train project will facilitate 0.25 million people daily, whereas by 2025, it is expected to facilitate 0.5m people daily. The metro train will travel a distance of some 11 kilometres. Overall, 26 stations have been built on a 27.12-kilometre-long track. Under the project 27 trains – with five bogies each – will travel across the track in 45 minutes, a journey which previously took 2.5 hours, according to the Punjab government.
The OLMT route begins at Ali Town and ends at the Dera Gujran/Ring Road Interchange: Ali Town-Raiwind Road-Thokar Niaz Baig-Multan Road-Chauburji-Lake Road-Ustadullah Bakhsh Road-GPO Chowk-Macleod Road-Nicholson Road -Boharwala Chowk-Sultanpura-GT Road-Dera Gujran/Ring Road Interchange.
So far, 88 per cent construction work and over 70 per cent of the electrical and mechanical work on the project has been completed.
All the bogies of the train have been imported from China. Each bogie is 20 metres long. Although there are 60 seats per bogie, each can accommodate up to 200 people. Separate seats have been allocated for women, the elderly and differently-abled individuals.
Published in Daily Times, May 17th 2018.
