Indian railways to welcome its first airport like hub railway station- Habibganj railway station, at Madhya Pradesh by the end of this year. The station is being redeveloped by IRSDC, will be a world-class transit hub with a dedicated concourse area. SK Lohia, the CEO and MD of IRSDC has confirmed that a lot of civil work for this particular ambitious project has been completed. Due to the requirements of various clearances, the completion of this project took a much longer time than expected.
IRSDC is redeveloping the Habibganj railway station on the PPP model along with the Bansal Group. While the station redevelopment will cost around Rs 100 crore, approximately Rs 350 crore will be spent on commercial development in and around the railway station.
Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited is solely responsible for executing the ambitious station redevelopment programme of the Narendra Modi government. It aims to invite the private sector to participate in providing world-class standards to passengers on major railway stations in India. Incidentally, the Habibganj railway station will also be India’s first to be made on the lines of the Heidelberg railway station in Germany.
The remarkable features of the Habibganj railways station redevelopment programme:
- The entrance will have a glass dome-like structure
- Dedicated concourse area with airport-like retail outlets and food cafeterias
- Clean toilets and plush waiting lounge for the passengers
- Gaming and museum zones with refurbished, world-class interiors
- Exit underpass to avoid the congestion of passengers de-boarding trains
- “Green building” with LED lighting and wastewater treatment for reuse
- The eastern side will have hotels, hospitals, spas and a convention center outside the station
Apart from the Habibganj railway station, the Gandhinagar railway station, Surat railway station, Chandigarh, Anand Vihar, Baiyappanahalli stations are also being redeveloped into modern transit hubs.
