Parliament Question: Redevelopment of Chandigarh Railway Station under ABS Scheme

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2847 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.08.2025 REDEVELOPMENT OF CHANDIGARH RAILWAY STATION UNDER ABS SCHEME 2847. SHRI MANISH TEWARI : Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state: (a) whether Chandigarh Railway Station is being redeveloped under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme; (b) if so, the total estimated cost and timeline of the redevelopment project, along with the percentage of work completed so far; (c) whether the Government is aware of reports regarding poor hygiene, inadequate basic amenities and persistent crowding at the station despite the ongoing redevelopment; (d) if so, the steps taken/proposed to be taken to improve sanitation, passenger facilities and crowd management at the station during and after the redevelopment process; (e) whether any third-party or citizen feedback mechanisms are being used to monitor the quality and progress of the redevelopment work, if so, the details thereof; and (f) whether any audit/review has been conducted of similar railway station redevelopment projects across the country and , if so, the details thereof? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW) (a) to (f): Chandigarh railway station has been identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. Redevelopment ..2/--2- work of Chandigarh railway station has been sanctioned at an estimated cost of ₹436.29 Crores. The work for redevelopment of Chandigarh has progressed well and the structural works for station building at Panchkula side and Chandigarh side have been completed. The works of air concourse, foot over bridge, parking, platform upgradation including platform shelters, finishes of station building etc have been taken up. The station redevelopment works are being taken up with minimum effect on the station operation. So far, 1337 stations have been identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme including Chandigarh railway stations. Presently Phase-I work of 105 stations have been completed. The names of these stations are given below: Ambikapur, Amgaon, Ayodhya Dham, Bagalkot, Baijnath Paprola, Balrampur, Bareilly City, Begumpet, Bhanupratappur, Bhilai, Bijnor, Bundi, Chanda Fort, Chidambaram, Chinchpokli, Chirayinkeezh, Cuttack, Dakor, Derol, Deshnoke, Devlali, Dharwad, Dhule, Dongargarh, Fatehabad, Fatehpur Shekhawati, Gadag, Gogameri, Gokak Road, Gola Gokarnath, Gomti Nagar, Govardhan, Govind Garh, Govindpuri, Govindpur Road, Haibargaon, Hathras City, Hapa, Idgah Agra Jn., Izzatnagar, Jam Jodhpur, Jam Wanthali, Joychandi Pahar, Kalyani Ghoshpara, Kanalus Jn., Karamsad, Karimnagar, Katni South, Kedgaon, Kosamba Jn., Kulitturai, Lasalgaon, Limbdi, Lonand Jn., Mahe, Mahuva, Mailani, Mandal Garh, MandawarMahwa Road, Mandi Dabwali, Mannargudi, Matunga, Mithapur, Morbi, Munirabad, Murtizapur Jn., Narmadapuram (Hoshangabad), Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Itwari Junction, Okha, Orchha, Palitana, Panagarh, Parel, Pirpainti, Pokhrayan, Polur, Rajgarh, Rajmahal, Rajula Jn., Ramghat Halt, Saharanpur Jn., Samakhiyali, Samalpatti, Sankarpur, ..3/--3- Savda, Seoni, Shahad, Shajapur, Shridham, Siddharth Nagar, Sihor Jn., Srirangam, St.Thomas Mount, Sullurpeta, Suraimanpur, Swaminarayan Chappia, Thawe, Tiruvannamalai, Ujhani, Urkura, Utran, Vadakara, Vadala Road, Vriddhachalam Jn., Warangal. The Amrit Bharat Station scheme envisages development of stations on a continuous basis with a long-term approach. It involves preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the amenities at the stations like improvement of station access, circulating areas, waiting halls, toilets, lift/escalators as necessary, platform surfacing and cover over platform, cleanliness, free Wi-Fi, kiosks for local products through schemes like ‘One Station One Product’, better passenger information systems, executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings, landscaping, etc. keeping in view the necessity at each station. The scheme also envisages improvement of building, integrating the station with both sides of the city, multimodal integration, amenities for Divyangjans, 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. 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. Chandigarh railway station falls under the jurisdiction of Northern Railway for which a total allocation of Rs 2216 crores (Budget Estimate) has been made for the financial year 2025-26 under Plan Head-53. ..4/--4- 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. Cleanliness is a continuous process and every endeavour is made to keep the station premises in properly maintained and clean condition. The housekeeping work at Chandigarh Railway Station is being done at good standards while the station redevelopment work is being carried out. All the passenger facilities such as Platforms, waiting rooms, Toilets and bathrooms etc are being maintained in hygienic condition for the comfort of passengers. Frequent inspections by the concerned officials are being conducted at Chandigarh railway station to ensure its cleanliness. In order to regulate rush at platforms and to prevent any untoward incident, following steps are taken by railways in coordination with GRP/Local Police:- 1. Queue System is maintained for hassle free boarding of passengers in general coaches of important trains at originating stations. 2. Skilled RPF staff is deployed in CCTV Control Room to keep a close watch on the crowded areas. ..5/--5- 3. GRP & RPF staffs are deployed at foot-over bridges to regulate crowd smoothly in order to avoid stampede like situation during the heavy rush period and render real time assistance to passengers. 4. State Level Security Committee of Railways (SLSCR) have been constituted for all State/Union Territories under the Chairmanship of respective Director General of Police/Commissioner of States/Union Territories for regular monitoring and review of security arrangements of the Railways. 5. Intelligence units (CIB/SIB) and plain cloth staff are deployed for collection of intelligence, gathering more information about rush and accordingly arrangements are made associating GRP/Police. 6. Coordination with GRP/State Police is made for ensuring crowd management. Indian Railways has a well established mechanism to monitor implementation of projects including their reviews, inspection, feedbacks, check for quality of works and audits. Works are carried out adhering to the standards and specifications laid down in various codes and manuals. Inspections/audits/checks are carried out from time to time by various agencies/officials/multi-disciplinary teams as per laid down instructions and actions for correction are taken immediately. This is a continuous and ongoing process. ****