The prime minister will also lay the groundwork for roughly 1,500 road overbridges and underbridges in various states at a virtual ceremony at more than 2,000 train stations, officials announced on Wednesday.
At a cost of Rs 40,000 crore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone for 550 Amrit Bharat stations on February 26. The initiative would improve amenities at train stations by creating rooftop plazas and city centers. At a ceremony that will be held virtually at more than 2,000 train stations, the prime minister will also lay the cornerstone for some 1,500 road overpasses and underpasses in several states, according to officials on Wednesday.
The prime minister will participate in the event through video conference.
About 50,000 schoolchildren who took part in speech, essay, and poem writing competitions on the theme of “2047 – Viksit Bharat ki Railway,” which were organized by the Indian Railways across 4,000 schools, would also receive prizes.
About 50,000 prizes will be given out during the event by divisional railway managers and senior railway executives to the nearly four lakh youngsters who competed in various competitions.
For the purpose of developing Indian railway stations, the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme was introduced.
To improve station amenities, master plans must be prepared and phased in. These plans should focus on improving station access, circulating areas, waiting halls, restrooms, lifts and escalators as needed, cleanliness, free WiFi, local product kiosks through ‘One Station, One Product’ schemes, and improved passenger information systems.
In accordance with the requirements at each station, the plan also calls for the construction of executive lounges, designated areas for business meetings, and landscaping.
In the long run, it plans to create city centers at the station, improve the buildings, integrate the stations with both sides of the cities, integrate multimodally, provide amenities for people with disabilities, provide ballastless tracks, create “roof plazas” as needed, and phase the project according to feasibility.
The plan calls for a phased transition to environmentally friendly and sustainable solutions, contingent on funding availability and the state of current assets.
It also suggests widening roads, demolishing unneeded buildings, appropriately sized signage, designated pedestrian walkways, thoughtfully designed parking spaces, and better illumination to guarantee easy access.
High-level platforms (760–840 millimeters) are planned for all station classifications under the project. The plan specifies that the platforms’ length should typically be 600 meters.
Under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, 1,318 stations have been chosen thus far based on suggestions from zonal railroads and stations situated in significant cities and towns.
