19 Mumbai suburban stations set for revamp, new features

The rail planning body of Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) has identified 19 stations across suburban Mumbai that shall be developed and renovated. Earlier this week, the officials submitted draft plans for the same to the Railway Board for which a cost of Rs 950 crore has been allotted.

"These stations will be developed in a way that it shall have several passenger amenities and huge space for movement. The average cost of the revamp for each station shall be around Rs 50 crore," said R Khurana, Chairman and Managing Director, MRVC.

Seven of these stations are on the Central Line, four are on the Harbour Line and eight on the Western Line. There are 19 stations on the Mumbai suburban network that are highly congested and need immediate attention. The MRVC will build decks, elevated walking space above the platforms, new foot over bridges (FOBs), modify existing FOBs, build pathways and skywalks connecting the FOBs, have mini restaurants on the elevated portion (as the food stalls on platforms are slowly being removed) and decongest ticketing area.

Moreover, there will also be a focus on the commercial development of the stations which will include shopping complexes, multiplexes and health centers. At present, stations like Andheri, Goregaon, Borivali are some of the stations that have been developed to such a huge extent. Even the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC) is doing similar redevelopment work at other stations. The project comes under the Rs 54,000 crore MUTP-3A.