Hyderabad: With the facelift of major Railway stations going on, including Secunderabad and Nampally, Begumpet railway station is also in the queue which is undergoing massive transformation and the works are slated to be completed by next month.

Under The Amrit Bharat Station Scheme's second phase, a major transformation of the station has been planned. Begumpet Railway Station is a stopover for important and superfast trains coming from Mumbai and Pune, and around 122 trains ply from here. The average footfall is around 16,648 passengers per day. Once the stations get renovated, the capacity of handling passengers per day will be increased. At present, 75 per cent of work has been completed.

According to South Central Railway, with the expectation of an increase in footfall in the coming days, Indian Railways has planned a major transformation of the station and the key features of the redevelopment include – segregation of arrival/departure passenger movements to the extent possible; superior road connectivity with the city for quick and easy access to the railway station; and adequate parking within the station premises. The station has two platforms but there were no escalators or no lift facilities.

Under the scheme, two lifts and two escalators have been built. Earlier there was no waiting area at the station and 750 sq m has been built and also 288 sq m of the old station building has been refurbished. Along with this, a new ticket booking window with departure is being planned and around Rs 26.55 crore has been sanctioned for the development of the project. Highlighting the present status, a senior officer of SCR said, “The works of the station began last year and they are expected to be completed by next month.

Works are been taken up in a phased manner so that there is no hindrance for the passenger movement. Around 75 per cent of work has been completed including the entry ramp, 12m Foot Over Bridge and Lift & Escalator and works are under progress, including the work at station building, which is in the finishing stages along with the circulating area and approach road and also platform resurfacing is in the final stage”.