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Pakistan Railways Recovers 2,826 Acres Worth Rs21bn as Land Leasing Revenue Crosses Rs23bn
By Mariam Khan
Real Estate Analyst
4 min read
Pakistan Railways has retrieved 2,826 acres of encroached land valued at Rs21.178 billion during the six financial years from 2020-21 to 2025-26, as part of a sustained anti-encroachment campaign across the national railway network. The department owns a total of 168,858 acres nationwide, of which more than 70 percent is used for operational purposes, 9.1 percent has been leased out, 4.97 percent remains under illegal occupation by private individuals, and a further 2.36 percent is under forcible possession by government departments.
How the Recovery Effort Actually Works
According to Pakistan Railways' own land management portal, the department has intensified recovery efforts in coordination with provincial governments, with provincial chief secretaries and inspectors general of police formally requested to provide law enforcement support during anti-encroachment operations. Quarterly anti-encroachment plans have been prepared, and legal notices under the Possession Ordinance, 1965 are issued to encroachers, giving them 14 days to vacate illegally occupied land. Unauthorised occupation by government departments specifically is being addressed differently, through regularisation via formal leases under the railway land policy, rather than through the same eviction process applied to private encroachment.
The Digital System Behind This Effort
Pakistan Railways has digitised and geo-referenced its land records through the Pakistan Railways Land Management and Information System, which has been integrated with provincial databases and is accessible through a dedicated mobile application, enabling real time monitoring and tracking of encroachment status. This digital infrastructure underpins the department's ability to identify, monitor, and act against encroachment with a level of consistency that would not be possible relying on manual land records alone.
The Genuine Property Monetisation Angle Beyond Recovery Alone
Beyond recovering encroached land, Pakistan Railways has separately generated Rs23.017 billion in revenue from short term land leasing over the past three years under the Railway Property and Land Rules, 2023. This framework allows railway land to be monetised through three distinct channels: short term auctions, medium to long term development arrangements managed through the Property and Land Directorate and REDAMCO, the Ministry of Railways' own real estate development and marketing subsidiary, and non-competitive leases specifically for public welfare projects. This gives the department a formal, rules based structure for generating non-fare revenue from its substantial land holdings, distinct from and complementary to its encroachment recovery work.
Why This Distinction Between Recovery and Leasing Matters
Recovering encroached land and actively leasing land for revenue are two related but genuinely separate functions, and Pakistan Railways' land management strategy now formally addresses both simultaneously. Recovered land becomes available for the department's own operational use or for formal leasing under the 2023 Rules, meaning successful encroachment recovery directly feeds into the pool of land available for legitimate, revenue generating leasing arrangements going forward.
What Remains Unconfirmed
Despite this recovery pace, roughly 4.97 percent of the department's total 168,858 acres remains under illegal private occupation, and a specific timeline for recovering this remaining acreage has not been detailed. Given the historical pattern of recovery proceeding in measured, multi-year increments rather than rapid, complete resolution, readers should treat continued encroachment as an ongoing, longer term challenge rather than one nearing full resolution.
What This Means for Land Near Railway Corridors Nationally
For anyone with property interests near railway land anywhere in Pakistan, this sustained recovery and digitisation effort signals a genuinely more active, better documented approach to encroachment enforcement than in previous years, meaning informal or long standing occupation of railway adjacent land should not be assumed safe from future recovery action. Businesses and developers interested in formally leasing railway land for commercial or development purposes should note the structured leasing framework now available under the 2023 Rules, and should approach the Property and Land Directorate or REDAMCO directly to explore legitimate leasing opportunities rather than relying on any existing informal arrangement.