Railway and road crashes are a common occurrence in the country as death toll from the deadly train crash at Sadiqabad climbed to 24 as Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid claimed that the collision was the result of human negligence. Passenger train Akbar Express, travelling to Quetta from Lahore, rammed into a freight train at Walhar railway station near Sadiqabad in Rahim Yar Khan districts on Thursday morning.

The impact was so strong that several compartments of Akbar Express went off the rail while the locomotive suffered substantial damage, according to officials. Train accidents are common in Pakistan, where the railways have seen decades of decline due to corruption, mismanagement and lack of investment.

Rashid, speaking to a private news channel, said that an inquiry report of the incident will be finalised today and those found responsible for the mishap will be held accountable. As news of the train collision broke and condemnations started pouring, Railways Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed announced that Rs. 1.5 million would be paid to the families of those who had lost their lives. The social media went abuzz with criticism of the minister who is known for his flamboyant political commentary.

Citizens said that the repeated train incidents were solely the responsibility of Rasheed and perhaps a change in the ministry was warranted. The Carriages and the train engine were heavily damaged. On June 20, three people died when Jinnah Express, travelling from Karachi to Lahore, crashed into a parked freight train in Hyderabad.

When there are engine drivers who get down on a halt station to buy naan-chholay, give control of the engine to a young girl and no corrective actions are taken, then accidents should not come as a surprise. Railway Minister Sheikh Rashid should tender his resignation from the railways ministry.

This may not change the pathetic chugging of the railways immediately, but the symbolic move will help the railways come out of the jinx, it has been in since the firebrand politician from Rawalpindi took over the department one year ago, which was not doing well under his predecessor, Khawaja Saad Rafique.

The move will also set a healthy trend of acceptance of the failure of the system by someone holding the highest post in a department. A National Assembly standing committee was recently told that there have been 384 train accidents in Pakistan since 2014: 74 in 2018-19, 67 in 2017-18, 78 in 2016-17, 76 in 2015-16, and 89 accidents in 2014-15.

These figures are by no means small. For the past many years, the Pakistan Railways has been on decline due to corruption, mismanagement, inefficiency, favouritism and nepotism in recruitment. So far not much corrective measures seem to have been taken by the government to stem the rot. Prime Minister Imran Khan, who often talks of loot and plunder as a result of arbitrary powers by previous rulers, has chosen not to take any action on the railway losses and spree of accidents.

The Pakistan Railways never makes the passengers’ safety a priority. The minister, instead of making the railway journey a safe and happy experience, always showed his inclination towards initiating more number of trains. Minister gleefully referred to the number of trains he started during his tenure.

During a Question Hour in parliament, it emerged that out of the 10 trains he initiated, six were running in losses. But who can question the powerful minister and who does care about the losses? The PTI-lead government should order a probe to get to the causes of frequent railway accidents in the country.

We suggest before ordering a probe into the incident Prime Minister must take resignation Railway Minister Sheikh Rasheed and beside that all aspects of the issue should be kept in view. This is necessary to bring the railways back on track.