Refurbished Millat Express Inaugurated at Faisalabad Station as Pakistan Railways Upgrades Its Rakes

Pakistan Railways formally opened its newly refurbished Millat Express at Faisalabad Railway Station on Thursday. The railways’ chief executive, Muhammad Hafeezullah, inaugurated the prepared rake and then walked through it himself, checking the work coach by coach.

The train runs between Lalamusa and Karachi via Faisalabad, and according to the railways, all three of its rakes have now been refurbished — the one opened at Faisalabad is the first to be formally presented. The chief executive said the department plans to refurbish and upgrade the rakes of its passenger and freight trains more broadly, rather than leaving ageing coaches to wear out in service.

Part of a wider upgrade drive

The work sits inside an upgrade programme being pushed on the direction of Federal Railways Minister Hanif Abbasi, aimed at improving the condition of coaches and making journeys cleaner, more comfortable and more passenger-friendly. After the inauguration, officers were told to keep the coaches properly maintained, repair onboard facilities on time and hold cleanliness standards — the point being, as any regular traveller knows, that a train earns its reputation in the weeks after the ribbon is cut, not on the day.

Railways officials also link the refurbishment to safety. Keeping rolling stock and locomotives in sound condition is treated as basic defence against derailments and other accidents across the network, especially on the busy Main Line-1 corridor. The Millat is not the only train in the workshop queue: the Karachi Express and Karakoram Express are being upgraded under the same programme, making Thursday’s ceremony at Faisalabad one step in a longer effort to lift the standard of long-distance rail travel.