What the decision means
Pakistan Railways this week turns on a clear shift in how the organisation will present and check its books. Pakistan Railways has decided to have its financial statements audited under the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)—global rules for how accounts are prepared and reported—for the first time in its history, aiming to strengthen financial transparency, accountability and good governance.
Federal Minister for Railways Hanif Abbasi said an internationally reputed chartered accountancy firm would be engaged to audit the organisation’s financial statements. He linked the move to clearer reporting and tighter oversight of public money inside the railway system.
How the auditor will be chosen
Abbasi said the audit firm would be selected strictly on merit and in line with Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules—the federal rules that govern how government bodies buy goods and services. The full procurement process, he added, would run through the e-PADS portal so that bidding and award steps remain open to scrutiny.
Using an outside firm under those rules is meant to show that the railway auditor process is competitive and documented, rather than informal or opaque. Officials have not yet named the firm that will win the contract.
Reform push and what follows the report
The IFRS audit sits inside Pakistan Railways’ wider drive to improve financial discipline, internal controls and institutional transparency, in line with the State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) Act, 2023—the law that sets governance expectations for government-owned companies and entities.
Abbasi said stringent decisions would be taken once the independent audit report is in hand. He stressed there would be no compromise on transparency and that every rupee of the organisation would be accounted for. Eliminating corruption and ensuring financial accountability, he said, remain among the government’s top priorities.
For readers following Pakistan Railways news, the immediate change is procedural: accounts prepared to IFRS, checked by a hired firm, and followed by management action based on what the auditors find. Fare tables, train schedules and station services are not altered by this announcement alone; the practical public effect depends on what the report later shows and what reforms follow.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Pakistan Railways ab pehli dafa IFRS ke mutabiq apne hisaab ki audit karwaegi. Wazir Hanif Abbasi ne kaha ke ek mashhoor accountancy firm is kaam ke liye rakhi jaegi. Firm ka intekhab PPRA ke qawaid aur e-PADS portal se hoga taake process saaf rahe. Is se ye umeed hai ke railways ke paise ka hisaab zyada wazeh aur zimmedar banega.
