‘Metro bus, train subsidy a burden’

LAHORE

Pakistan Muslim League-Q senior central leader and former deputy prime minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has said that Rs140 billion annual subsidy on jangla bus and “dollar making” orange line train would be burden on Punjab and as a result of wastage of this huge amount, people would remain without medicines in hospitals and children of the poor without education because the government was leasing out on contract instead of improving conditions in hospitals and also seeking donations for 1122 like rescue service.

Responding to questions from journalists at his residence here, the former chief minister said that contract for construction of orange line had been awarded to such an inexperienced firm which had not undertaken such project previously and it dealt in arms business.

In reply to a question about scrapping of underground train project of his government, Ch Pervaiz Elahi said that we had awarded its contract to a firm which had completed Shanghai Metro Train and Euro Tunnel like projects, Punjab was neither in deficit nor had to pay any subsidy and also there was no investment of the Punjab government. He said pointedly that unlike 3 percent markup rate for his orange line project, markup for our project was only 0.25 percent with 10 years grace period and owing to its public utility the Asian Development Bank had even released first installment of loan following approval of the project.