Moving beyond the usual kiosks, the Delhi Metro is planning to set up a food plaza at the busy Barakhamba station of the Blue Line, which connects Noida and Vaishali with Dwarka.
The plaza, however, will not come up inside the station. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has a piece of barren land adjacent to the station where the facility is set to come up.
“We have 2,400 sqft of land and have proposed that it be given on lease basis where the lessee will have to develop, operate and maintain the food plaza or cafeteria,” said a metro official. The plot has been barren ever since the DMRC acquired it in 2005.
ADVERTISEMENT
The DMRC hopes that the plaza will attract office-goers, as Barakhamba houses a number of corporates.
The project site falls in the Central Business District (CBD) as per the Master Plan of Delhi, 2021.
Given its proximity to Connaught Place, a lot of commuters will also use it as a place to hangout as the plaza will have a proper sitting area, the official added.
ADVERTISEMENT
The planned structure is going to be a single-storey temporary building with mezzanine floors.
Generating revenue
“The structures will have to be without any foundation or footing, so it can be removed when required. Fabric structures, building systems and steel prefab structures will be used. The exteriors, especially the glass facade, will be developed in harmony to the existing design of the station,” said another official.
The project is aimed to generate up-front and recurring revenues for the DMRC and supplement its non fare-box collections in the operation phase.
Currently, only Rajiv Chowk metro station of the Blue Line has eateries with sitting spaces.