₹556.8 CR TO BE PUMPED IN TO UPGRADE CHARBAGH RLY STATION

: The Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) has mooted a proposal for the redevelopment of the Lucknow Railway Station— Charbagh.

Lucknow Railway Station redevelopment is a railway up-gradation project including complete integrated development and redevelopment of both NR and NER stations along with 12.23 acres land for commercial purpose, said Ved Parkash Dudeja, vice chairman, RLDA.

“The objective of the redevelopment is to equip the stations with state-of-the-art amenities like segregation of arrival and departure, air-concourse, footover bridges, lifts and escalators, facilities for the speciallyabled passengers, etc. to ensure a hassle-free travel experience. The station will be redeveloped on a design-build-operate-finance-transfer (DBFOT) model in two phases with a total cost of Rs 556.8 crore,” he said.

The pre-bid meeting for developers was held on April 9, 2021. The deadline for the submission of Request for Qualification (RFQ) from intending bidders is June 24, 2021, he said.

He said the redevelopment encompasses two components--first is mandatory component that is station and second is station estate component under which surrounding railway land would be used for pre-approved commercial and residential development.

The cost of redevelopment in phase 1 is estimated at Rs 442.5 crore over three years whereas in redevelopment of phase 2 the estimated cost was Rs 114.3 crore over two years, he said.

“The design will incorporate the green building concept while adhering to the life-cycle cost minimisation approach, which will be the hallmarks of the newly-redeveloped station. At the same time the heritage look of the existing grand station building will be retained,” Dudeja said.

“The redevelopment of the Lucknow Railway Station will augment the tourism potential and lead to employment generation. It will also boost real estate in the vicinity and have a formidable socio-economic impact on the region,” he said.