The Union Cabinet on 28 September approved the Indian Railways’ proposal for redevelopment of three major railway stations:
- New Delhi Railway Station;
- Ahmedabad Railway Station; and,
- Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Mumbai.
Addressing the press in the national capital, Union Railways Minister, Ashwini Vaishnaw, said, “Cabinet approves the Indian Railways’ proposal for redevelopment of three major railway stations – New Delhi Railway Stn., Ahmedabad Railway Stn. and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Mumbai at an investment of ~ Rs 10,000 crore.”
The redevelopment project will be carried out in the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) mode.
New Delhi Railway Station will be re-developed in form of a unique twin dome layout. For the convenience of the passengers, a roof plaza of about 15 acres will be built above the tracks and a 23 lane-km of elevated road network has also been planned.
The design of the Ahmedabad station has been inspired by the iconic Modhera Sun Temple in Gujarat.
The proposed design includes a huge arch and sun-themed architecture across the station.
The CSMT redevelopment plan involves decongesting areas around the station and enhancing its beauty to make it a major tourist attraction.
The unique heritage appearance of the station building will be retained. Walkways have been planned around the CSMT station to enable the tourists to explore the heritage area.
Every station will have a spacious roof plaza with all passenger amenities at one place along with spaces for retail, cafeterias, recreational facilities. Both sides of the city will be connected with the station, with the station building on both sides of Railway tracks.
To ease passenger convenience, all the three stations will be integrated with other modes of transportation like bullet train, metro, city buses and taxis.
The mega redevelopment plan is expected to create 35,733 new jobs and will enhance the travelling experience of more than 20 lakh passengers.