Train wreck

Fixing responsibility

It was natural for Khwaja Saad Rafique to defend the integrity of the bridge that collapsed yesterday under the weight of the passing train. But in implying that Railways had checked and cleared this specific bridge the minister is only putting himself, and his ministry, in a more difficult position. Going by his account, it’s not just that the ministry is not up to scratch as widely believed, but rather quite incompetent as well. The military was more forthcoming in its assessment, precisely because less spin was involved, and squarely faulted the bridge.

The army’s input in the matter was important not just because it usually does the cleaning up after such tragedies – owing to another one of the civilian setup’s numerous inabilities – but also because a good number of soldiers were on the train; travelling from Pannu Aqil to the Kharian cantonment. This accident puts the brass in a particularly uncomfortable position. Analysts have long lamented the suicidal official disregard for Railways, especially since now Pakistan is officially at war. Militaries invariably rely on railway systems for movement. And while the fight in far away Fata does not involve railway tracks, there’s no saying what might happen if India’ s belligerence increases a notch. It wouldn’t do the powerful army much good if it is logistically compromised because of the Railways’ chronic inefficiency.

Pakistan’s is not the type of democratic culture where gross negligence and sheer incompetence can result in heads rolling, even though it is the norm in much of the world. But Railways’ paralysis not only hurts the people – like so many other areas where government service delivery is involved – now it is also disturbing the military. The ruling party, as fond as it is of ordering inquiries, might not be able to wash this one away as easily as it is used to. Kh Saad is very fond of finger-pointing and fist-swinging, especially when departments he has nothing to do with are involved, like the interior ministry. But now that his own ministry is under the microscope, it would behoove him to make sure all those responsible are brought to book and, far more importantly, such unavoidable tragedies are not repeated.