The country’s first world class railway station Gandhinagar Capital Railway Station with facilities and amenities like five star hotels, spa, shopping centres and more will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday.
The redeveloped Gandhinagar Capital Railway Station project was done in partnership with the Gujarat state government and the Ministry of Railways through Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC).
“The station is future ready, and the concourse will be used for departing passengers when the footfalls increase at the station. However, in the near future, it is planned to open retail, food and entertainment outlets in this area to serve the demands of the passengers as well as the local population,” said Chairman Railway Board and CEO Indian Railways Suneet Sharma at a curtain raiser Press conference. Resident Commissioner Gujarat Arti Kanwar was also present at the media conference.
The station is equipped with modern facilities like ample waiting spaces, through columnless roof to provide protection against sun/rain etc, air conditioned multipurpose waiting hall, baby feeding room, improved signages and modern toilets, interfaith prayer room for the common man.
Other amenities like the art gallery, theme facade lighting, etc will provide additional attractions which will not only enhance passenger satisfaction but will also prove to be a matter of pride for all as this station can boast of many firsts in the country.
Without the concourse, the redeveloped station has been designed to handle 1,500 passengers in peak hour. With the concourse, the capacity will go up to 2,200 passengers in the peak hour.
“Market players such as Big Bazaar and Shopper’s Stop have also shown interest in opening their mini outlets making it convenient for the passengers and local population to shop at the station. The redeveloped station will function like a ‘city centre rail mall’ where travel will be one of the several functions that it will serve,” said a statement by Ministry of Railways.
An official statement said that work on the redevelopment of 125 stations is underway. “Out of this, IRSDC is working on 63 stations, and Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) is working on 60 stations with two stations being taken up by zonal railways. The total investment for the redevelopment of 123 stations along with real estate development is more than Rs 50,000 crore,” said Sharma.
The Habibganj station in Bhopal and the Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) at Bengaluru have also been recently redeveloped. Work at the Ayodhya, Bijwasan (Delhi), Gomtinagar (Lucknow), Delhi Safdarjung and Ajni (Nagpur) stations are also under progress.
Beaides, Modi will also inaugurate the new Railway projects like the gauge converted and electrified Mahesana – Varetha line, and the newly electrified Surendranagar – Pipavav section. This section will be integrated with the Dedicated Freight Corridors and is equipped to handle double-stack containers. The PM will also be flagging off the two new trains on the occasion.
Redevelopment of Gandhinagar Capital railway station will act as a city booster and create investment cycle, job opportunities and in general uplift the economy of Gandhinagar, which is the capital of the state of Gujarat.
This is first of its kind project in India and will pave the way for similar development in land stressed cities like Mumbai and Bangalore.