Centre to spend Rs 10,000 cr on redevelopment of New Delhi, CSMT, Ahmedabad railway stations; Rs 60,000 cr on overall project

Under redevelopment programme of the Indian Railways, the Union Cabinet has approved the proposal for the re-development of three major railway stations, namely New Delhi, Ahmedabad and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CSMT) Mumbai on Monday.  

The project involves an investment of approximately Rs 10,000 crores, as per news agency ANI.  

New Delhi railway station will integrate train services with buses, auto & metro rail services. Ahmedabad railway station redesign inspired by Modera's Sun temple. CSMT's heritage building won't be touched but buildings nearby will be re-developed:Railways Min Ashwini Vaishnaw pic.twitter.com/3NcMlX1UYh

— ANI (@ANI) September 28, 2022

It is leant that heritage sites will not be harmed or touched during the redevelopment projects of the Indian Railways. Already, work is under progress on as many as 199 railways stations across the country. Of the total, physical work is underway on 32 such railway stations.  

As per Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the total cost on these 199 railway stations, including New Delhi, has been estimated to be around Rs 60,000. He said that tenders will be floated for the three stations within a period o 10 days.  

केंद्र सरकार ने नई दिल्ली, छत्रपति शिवाजी और अहमदाबाद रेलवे स्टेशन के पुनर्विकास के लिए 10,000 करोड़ रुपए अनुमोदन राशि स्वीकृति दी है। अभी कुल 199 रेलवे स्टेशन के पुनर्निमार्ण का कार्य भी चल रहा है: केंद्रीय मंत्री अश्विनी वैष्णव, दिल्ली pic.twitter.com/9MOAFawvMZ

— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) September 28, 2022

Speaking on the occasion, Ashwini Vaishnaw said New Delhi railway station, Ahmedabad railway station and CSMT, Mumbai, will be redeveloped in a time span of approximately two years to 3.5 years. Modular technology will be used in the redevelopment of these stations, he said. 

The Minister, who elaborated through a PPT, said that New Delhi railway station will integrate train services with buses, auto and metro rail services.  

"Ahmedabad railway station redesign is inspired by Modera's Sun temple. CSMT's heritage building won't be touched, but buildings nearby will be re-developed," added the railway minister.  

The decision came during the meeting of ministers of Union Cabinet, which also cleared Dearness Allowance (DA) hike and approved 78-days bonus to railway employees among other measures. 

In one of the important decisions, the Cabinet also decided to extend benefits of Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY) by three months. The PM-GKAY, which is part of Atmanirbhar Bharat to supply free food grains to migrants and poor, will continue till December 2022.