Pakistan Railways has ramped up efforts to reclaim approximately 13,972 acres of land, valued at billions of rupees, from illegal occupation by private individuals and various government departments nationwide. According to an official from the Ministry, 5,809 acres are illegally occupied in Punjab, 1,181 acres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 5,948 acres in Sindh, and 1,034 acres in Balochistan. The encroached land includes commercial, residential, agricultural properties, and areas occupied by various persons or departments.
Details reveal that 769 acres are commercial, 3,309 residential, 5,512 agricultural, and 4,382 under the occupation of different individuals or departments across all provinces. To counter this, Pakistan Railways has decided to expedite its ongoing anti-encroachment operations to reclaim land from various groups and businesses using it for diverse purposes for decades.
Joint procedure orders have been dispatched to all Divisional Superintendents of Pakistan Railways to reclaim encroached land. Anti-encroachment operations are underway across the railway network, with notices issued to encroachers under the Possession Ordinance 1965 to vacate railway land/structures within 14 days. Assistance from Pakistan Railway Police, District Administration, and law enforcement agencies is being sought for these operations.
Currently, Pakistan Railways owns 167,690 acres of land across the country, with 90,326 acres in Punjab, 39,428 acres in Sindh, 28,228 acres in Balochistan, and 9,708 acres in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
