Parliament Question: Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for Chengannur Railway Station

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1641 TO BE ANSWERED ON 10.12.2025 AMRIT BHARAT STATION SCHEME FOR CHENGANNUR RAILWAY STATION 1641. SHRI KODIKUNNIL SURESH : Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state: (a) the current status of the Chengannur Railway Station development project under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme; (b) the details of tendering, award of tender, and commencement of work along with the names of the contractors/agencies involved; (c) the details of estimated project cost, funding source and scope of works approved under the said scheme; (d) the details of the expected timeline for completion of the project; and (e) whether any delay/revision has been reported in implementation and, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons thereof? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW) (a) to (e): Chengannur railway station have been identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. The process for redevelopment work of Chengannur railway station has been taken up by Southern Railway at a sanctioned cost of Rs. 98.46 crores. …2/--2- The redevelopment of Chengannur railway station envisages construction of new terminal building, pilgrim shelter, foot over bridge, 12 m wide roof plaza, platform upgradation including platform shelter, improvement to circulating area and parking space etc. The tendering process for the redevelopment of Chengannur railway station has been taken up. In recent years, improvements to pay and use toilets in circulating area, improvements to AC waiting hall as well as retiring rooms and replacement of damaged platform shelter roofing have been executed at Chengannur railway station. 35 stations have been identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in the State of Kerala. List of the stations is given below: No. of State Names of Amrit Stations Amrit Stations Alappuzha , Angadippuram, Angamali For Kaladi, Chalakudi, Changanassery, Chengannur, Chirayinkeezh, Ernakulam, Ernakulam Town, Ettumanur, Ferok, Guruvayur, Kannur, Kasargod, Kayankulam Jn, Kollam Jn, Kozhikode, Kerala 35 Kuttippuram, Mavelikara, Neyyattinkara, Nilambur Road, Ottappalam, Parappanangadi, Payyanur, Punalur, Shoranur Jn., Thalassery, Thiruvananthapuram Central, Thrisur, Tirur, Tiruvalla, Tripunithura, Vadakara, Varkala Shivagiri, Wadakancheri. …3/--3- Presently work of 5 stations i.e. Chirayinkeezh, Changanassery, Kuttippuram, Shoranur Jn. and Vadakara have been completed. Amrit Bharat Station Scheme envisages development of stations on a continuous basis with a long-term approach. The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the stations. The master planning, keeping in view the necessity at each station includes:-  Improvement of access to station and circulating areas  Integration of station with both sides of city  Improvement of station building  Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water booths  Provision of wider foot over bridge/air concourse commensurate with passenger traffic  Provision of lift/escalators/ramp  Improvement /Provision of platform surface and cover over platforms  Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like ‘One Station One Product’  Parking areas, Multimodal integration  Amenities for Divyangjans  Better passenger information systems  Provision of executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings, landscaping, etc. The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment friendly solutions, provision of ballastless tracks, etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of city centre at the station in the long term. …4/--4- Development / upgradation of stations including under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme is generally funded under Plan Head-53 ‘Customer Amenities’. The details of allocation under Plan Head-53 are maintained Zonal Railway-wise and not work-wise or station-wise or State-wise. Chengannur railway station falls under the jurisdiction of Southern Railway for which a total allocation of Rs 1122 crores (Budget Estimate) has been made for the financial year 2025-26 under Plan Head-53. Development/upgradation of stations on Indian Railways is a continuous and ongoing process and works in this regard are undertaken as per requirement, subject to inter-se priority and availability of funds. The priority for development/ redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of stations is accorded to higher category of station over lower category of station while sanctioning and executing the works. Further, development/redevelopment/upgradation of Railway Stations is complex in nature involving safety of passengers & trains and requires various statutory clearances such as fire clearance, heritage, tree cutting, airport clearance etc. The progress also gets affected due to brown field related challenges such as shifting of utilities, (involving water/sewage lines, optical fiber cables, gas pipe lines, power/signal cables etc.) infringements, operation of trains without hindering passenger movement, speed restrictions due to works carried out in close proximity of high voltage power lines etc. and these factors affect the completion time. Therefore, no time frame can be indicated at this stage. *****