Indian Railways To Revamp 508 Train Stations At Rs 24,470 Crore; PM Modi To Lay Foundation Stone On 6 August

Highlighting the upgradation of passenger amenities as the main focus of the government, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday (4 August) said "Our Prime Minister is personally monitoring the progress of the Railways from time to time".

"He has given excellent inputs on the design of stations and he would be laying foundation stones for 508 stations on Sunday," Vaishnaw added.

Indian Railways is the national railway transport system in the country and it is an integral part of India's transportation infrastructure.

While total 508 stations will be redeveloped under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme across the country at an estimated cost of over Rs 24,000 crore, Northern Railway will develop 71 stations at an estimated cost of Rs 4,195 crore for which foundation stones will be laid on Sunday (6 August) by Prime Minister.

Indian Railways is one of the largest and busiest railway networks in the world, connecting thousands of towns and cities across the country and is a significant mode of travel for millions of people daily.

Northern Railway General Manager Shobhan Choudhuri addressing a press conference in Baroda House said world class facilities would be provided in the redeveloped stations.

The stations will also showcase the grandeur of India, its art and rich cultural heritage.

Lifts, escalators, concourses, waiting rooms and retail areas with modern facilities will be provided for the benefit of the passengers. Also, appropriate arrangements would be made for the arrival/departure of passengers and vehicle parking.

He said total 71 stations would be redeveloped by Northern Railway out of which five stations including Delhi Cantonment, Ghaziabad, Faridabad would be redeveloped under the scheme in the Delhi NCR.

He further said smooth passage will be given at stations by removing unwanted structures, improved lighting, better circulating area, upgraded parking space, divyangjan friendly infrastructure, environmentally conducive building by use of green and renewable energy.

The standard elements of station design will have development of stations as ‘City Centres’ and integration of both sides of city.

He said the revamped stations will reflect the local art and culture in its land scaping.

The stations in the northern States/UT covered by Northern Railway are: one each in Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh, 21 in Punjab, 10 in Haryana, two in Uttarakhand, 28 in Uttar Pradesh, three in Jammu and Kashmir, and five in Delhi NCR.