Last month, I took a train from Delhi Sarai Rohilla to Jaipur. When I reached the railway station, I remember thinking: "Why is this place always under construction?"
Apparently, the scaffolding and construction activity I noticed was not just routine maintenance. It is part of a sweeping national programme to turn India’s railway stations into modern urban hubs, and Delhi is getting thirteen of them.
The Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, launched by the Ministry of Railways, has so far identified 1,338 stations across India for phased redevelopment.
Of these, 13 are in Delhi, spanning some of the city's busiest stations, including Adarshnagar Delhi, Anand Vihar, Bijwasan, Delhi, Delhi Cantt, Delhi Sarai Rohilla, Delhi Shahadra, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Narela, New Delhi, Sabzi Mandi, Safdarjung, and Tilak Bridge.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently revealed the status of the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in Delhi.
What is the progress in Delhi?
At Bijwasan and Safdarjung, structural works on the station building and air concourse are done, with finishing touches now underway.
At Delhi Cantt, the east-side station building's structural framework is up, and work on an elevated road, arrival and departure concourses, and railway quarters is actively progressing.
The iconic New Delhi station is seeing some of its most complex interventions: a holding area at the Ajmeri Gate side is ready, while a double basement is being excavated at the Paharganj side, alongside foundations for an elevated road, works that are being executed without halting train operations.
Stations like Narela, Subzi Mandi and Tilak Bridge, typically overlooked in infrastructure overhauls, are receiving modern toilets, lifts, platform shelters, parking facilities and Divyangjan-friendly infrastructure.
At Tughlakabad, tactile paths, standard signage, and ramps for persons with disabilities have been recently sanctioned.
Apart from Delhi, renovations under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme seem to be in progress across the nation. The railway ministry is yet to update on their progress.