The “People’s Train Service”, launched with great fanfare in Quetta a week ago, derailed in an accident at Kuchlak. This public transport project cost about 5 billion rupees, but this accident, just a few days after the inauguration, has raised serious questions about administrative capacity and planning.
Members of the public and local citizens expressed deep concern over the incident, saying most projects launched in Balochistan in the name of public welfare allegedly fall prey to rampant corruption. Citizens say that, contrary to the government’s claims of billions of rupees, the old British-era track was given minor repairs and old carriages were merely painted before the service was started, and this should be investigated at a high level.
Railway officials, on the other hand, say the accident was caused by the theft of nuts and bolts from the track. Fortunately, there were no casualties in the incident.
According to the administration, an inquiry into the matter has been ordered, but an accident of this kind immediately after the inauguration has put a question mark over the future and transparency of this multi-billion-rupee project.
