B'luru's Yeshwantpur being developed as world-class railway station: Ashwini Vaishnaw

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Monday said Yeshwantpur Railway Station here is being developed as a world-class station with an investment of Rs 377 crore.

Speaking to reporters after inspecting some civil work, he said the railway station will have a roof plaza which would also have a children's play area, and space for selling products.

Noting that this is one of the most important railway stations in India, Vaishnaw said it caters to train traffic coming from Bengaluru (city station), Hassan, Tumakuru, and Hubli-Dharwad and also Delhi.

A major redevelopment work has been taken up at Yeshwantpur, where Rs 377 crore is being invested to make it a world-class railway station, the minister said.

''Both sides of the station will get connected. Both sides will have an entry and there will be a roof plaza, a very broad, very big roof plaza where people can wait in a very comfortable... where children can play, local products can be displayed and sold. So, in a very nice way that we have seen all over the world, that kind of railway station is being developed at Yeshwantpur,'' Vaishnaw explained.

According to him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to connect both sides of the city using the railway station is being realised.

The minister said that he had also informed the Railway team on Monday that this station will be catering to huge traffic in the coming 20 to 30 years because suburban, mainline railway and the Metro are joining here.

''To cater to additional traffic in the coming years, we should keep the land available... whatever even if one metre of land is available anywhere, that land should be kept free for expanding in the future,'' Vaishnaw said.

Wherever possible, the Railways should try to make the master plan in a way by which the expansion can be done ''today itself'', he added.