During the past three years (2020–2022), Pakistan Railways produced revenue totaling Rs. 5,269,315 by using its 23 saloons and inspection coaches for business.
According to a representative of the Ministry of Railways, “Pakistan Railways currently only has 23 saloons and inspection coaches with different dignitaries of the country who are entitled to use these saloons when needed.”
He described the saloons in detail, stating that the Prime Minister’s Secretariat has been given two extremely opulent coaches, while the Minister of Railways, the Secretary/Chairman of Railways, and another top Ministry official have each been given four coaches.
According to the source, just one saloon has been allotted to the federal government, while the governors of Sindh, Balochistan, Punjab, and the province governments have each been given one saloon.
In addition, eight saloons had been allocated for the Railway Headquarters in Lahore, of which four saloons were designated for principal officers and one each for the chief executive officer/general manager (BS-22), additional general manager (BS-21), inspector general of the railway police, and federal government inspector.
Six saloons, according to the source, have been set aside for the Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Sukkur, Lahore, and Karachi Divisional Superintendents.
According to him, the Principal Officers of Pakistan Railways were only permitted to ride in these saloons or inspection coaches while on official business. Above all, they claimed that opulent saloons could be rented for exclusive trips.
According to the official, the saloons were quite opulent and featured two rooms, a bathroom, a dining space, and a kitchen, much like a little house on wheels with access to every amenity.
He claimed that some of these saloons were inspection carriages with glass back walls from which the officials could observe the track and surroundings.
The official said, “Pakistan Railways officers are not authorized to use this facility outside of duty, and all of these saloons are generally 40 to 50 years old.”