Dr. Ejaz Ahmad (Expert on public transportation): It is a wonderful and timely initiative of the incumbent government to expand the network of buses for public facilitation. At a time when there are increasing emissions by cars, the buses will contribute in bringing down the environmental pollution. As per a research, the percentage of omissions in the air is around 42%, which is quite high. Almost 100,000 vehicles enter into Islamabad on daily basis that contribute to air pollution and omissions. People commuting from Rawat, Barakahu, Taxila and other adjoining areas of Rawalpindi/Islamabad had no decent transport system which made their mobility difficult. The initiative of Blue Line Metro Bus Service will be helpful in providing this facility to public as well as overcoming the air pollution. The people living in peripheries will have easy access to Metro Bus service through this initiative.  

Rana Shakeel Asghar (Spokesman, CDA): The Capital Development Authority is trying its best to provide cheaper and comfortable transportation to the people of Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The route from Peshawar Mor to New Islamabad Airport has already been linked through Orange Line Metro Service and the project is running successfully. We have imported new orange buses from China for this route. In the next phase, two new routes will be added. First route is from Barakahu to PIMs and the second from Rawat to PIMS. The road extension work from Rawat to Koral is underway, so we will initially run the route from Koral to PIMS. These two routes with the Blue Line and Green Line buses will be linked with Rawalpindi/Islamabad Metro Bus Service at PIMS. On the special instruction of the Prime Minister, we operationalized the Peshawar Mor to Airport route in one week. Moreover, CDA is working on feeder routes and planning to launch the shuttle services from the villages to the terminals. 

Jalil Abbas Jillani (Former Ambassador): The visit of US Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs Dilawar Syed to Pakistan is of key importance as it will be helpful in promoting bilateral investment and will also strengthen economic ties between Islamabad and the Washington. The potential of trade volume between the two countries is seven billion dollars. However, Pakistan's exports to the US stand around four to five billion dollars annually. The main objective of the visit of Dilawar Syed will be to improve business to business interaction between the two countries. There is a need to hold business conferences in the United States and Pakistan where the entrepreneurs from both the countries can work on joint projects. It is a good development that in the last two years Pakistan's exports to the United States have saw an increase, specifically in textile sector. Pakistan and the United States enjoy strong bilateral relations and have great potential to enhance cooperation in various fields. The regional peace, stability and recent developments in the region require strong Pak-US relations. I am optimistic that in the future Pak-US relations will show an upward trajectory.  

Shahid Amin (Former Ambassador): It seems that Pak-US relations are heading in positive direction. The United States is a big market and Pakistan has great export volume with Washington. It is need of the hour that US administration takes interest in investing in Pakistan to bring the country out of economic woes. There is no denying the fact that the United States is the sole super power and Pakistan at this point of time cannot afford sour relations with it. We must focus on improving our relations with the United States and prioritize our national interests.