NAB Recovers Rs21.85bn Worth of Railways Land in Jhelum

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau has recovered 1,844 kanals of Pakistan Railways land in Jhelum district, with an estimated market value of Rs21.85 billion, in one of the largest state-land recoveries announced this year.

The NAB recovers railways land drive covered revenue estates in Tehsil Jhelum and Tehsil Dina, where the land had been under illegal occupation. The bureau’s Islamabad-Rawalpindi chapter carried out the recovery under the directives of NAB Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Nazir Ahmed.

According to NAB, Director General Muhammad Rizwan Khan led the coordinated effort to identify, protect and reclaim the government asset. The bureau said the recovery reflected its continuing drive to safeguard public properties, prevent encroachments and secure national resources for lawful public use.

NAB recovers railways land: how the operation worked

At eight kanals to the acre, the recovered tract works out to roughly 230 acres spread across the two tehsils. NAB said the land was traced through revenue records and then physically secured after its Railways ownership was verified.

The bureau reiterated its commitment to protecting public resources in the national interest and said action against illegal encroachments would continue. It described the recovery as a significant step towards stopping the misuse of government property.

Why Railways land keeps getting grabbed

Pakistan Railways owns vast stretches of land along tracks, stations and yards across the country, and much of it has fallen to encroachers over the decades. Successive governments have promised to reclaim it, but enforcement has been patchy.

The recovery comes as the Railways pushes ahead with wider reforms. The government has been moving to outsource 13 trains by December and has promised to accelerate the long-delayed ML-1 railway upgrade, both of which depend on a clear land title along the corridor.

What happens next

NAB said the recovered land would be protected from fresh encroachment and kept available for legal and public use. The bureau said the identification exercise relied on revenue records, with field teams moving in to take physical possession once Railways ownership was confirmed. It added that similar verification drives were under way in other districts, though it did not name them. The bureau did not say whether cases would be filed against the former occupants, but said its accountability process would continue against the illegal occupation of state assets.

Where exactly is the recovered land?

In various revenue estates of Tehsil Jhelum and Tehsil Dina in Jhelum district, Punjab.

How much land did NAB recover in Jhelum?

NAB recovered 1,844 kanals of Pakistan Railways land in Tehsil Jhelum and Tehsil Dina, valued at Rs21.85 billion.

Who ordered the recovery operation?

The operation was carried out under the directives of NAB Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Nazir Ahmed, with DG NAB Islamabad-Rawalpindi Muhammad Rizwan Khan leading the effort.

What will happen to the recovered land?

NAB said the land would be protected and secured for legal and public use, with continued action against encroachments.