Minister of State for Railways K.H. Muniyappa on Sunday said the Ministry was exploring the possibility of developing Byappanahalli railway station as a World Class Station on public-private partnership basis.
“The Railways require about 50 acres of land for the project and the land is available with the NGEF. However, the State Government, which owned NGEF, has demanded Rs. 200 crore security deposit and the Railways doesn’t have the money. Hence the PPP model,” he told reporters after inaugurating the remodelled Bangalore Cantonment Railway Station and passenger facilitation centre at Yeshwanthpur Railway Station here.
A request for proposal (RFP) for PPP model for Byappanahalli will shortly be issued, said the Chief Administrative Officer (Construction), South Western Railway, S.S. Narayanan. Detailed planning for the world class station at Bangalore City railway station is also underway, he added.
Cantonment Station
The Station has been renovated to provide more amenities to passengers at a cost of Rs. 40 lakh. Several improvements, namely, entry to Platform No. 1 from the parking area, provision of new food plaza, improvement of signage, installation of the latest information display panels and mechanised cleaning of platforms have been introduced as part of the renovation works, Mr. Muniyappa said.
The work taken up on the side of Platform No. 2 includes widening of the road and providing proper car parking facilities. Display of reservation on LCD screens, new food plaza and extension of the platform shelter by four bays been introduced on this side, the Minister said. During his visit to the Station, Mr. Muniyappa directed Bangalore Divisional Railway Manager Sudhanshu Mani to clear the wild vegetation and develop a green stretch with trees alongside the Railway track near the Station.
Yeshwanthpur Station
At Yeshwanthpur, several improvements have been made at the entrance facing Tumkur Road, including increasing the car parking space, improving the passenger concourse, space for food plaza, converting the old parcel building into a cell kitchen and providing more lighting on platforms, Mr. Muniyapap said. At the Yeshwanthpur Market side, improvements have been made to the surface of Platform No. 1, circulating area, concourse and provision for facilitation centre.
Spacious waiting halls have also been earmarked after construction of the new station building. Mr. Muniyappa claimed that Yeshwanthpur Railway Station will have a modern look now having facilities like washable apron, additional foot-over-bridge, battery operated parcel and loco trucks, fuelling facilities for locomotives on both the sides and the like.
Bangalore Central Lok Sabha Member P.C. Mohan, Rajarajeshwarinagar MLA M. Sreenivas, Divisional Railway Manager, Bangalore Division, SWR, Sudhanshu Mani and Additional DRM Ravi Valluri were present.
