INDIA: Madurai’s main railway station is being rebuilt with two G+3 terminal buildings, a 42-metre-wide air concourse, and a direct subway link to the city’s Periyar bus stand — a redevelopment that will add 37 lifts and 27 escalators to a station that currently has neither in significant numbers.

Madurai Junction Platform 1 with an Indian Railways locomotive in Tamil Nadu before redevelopment
Platform 1 at Madurai Junction, Tamil Nadu. Illustrative photo. Photo: Nileshantony92, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Divisional Railway Manager Om Prakash Meena outlined the plans while hoisting the national flag at Madurai’s Independence Day celebrations on Aug. 15, according to Lotus Times. The Madurai Junction redevelopment is budgeted at ₹413 crore, part of a wider ₹293 crore programme upgrading 17 stations across the division under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme.

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What the redevelopment actually adds

Beyond the lifts and escalators, the plan includes three multi-level parking facilities and skywalks connecting the station to surrounding areas. The DRM said overall divisional earnings for the first four months of the current fiscal year reached ₹490 crore, up 8.28% year-on-year, with passenger earnings specifically rising 13.34% to ₹328.57 crore — figures Meena presented as evidence the division can support the investment.

Rameswaram and beyond

Meena also flagged ongoing redevelopment work at Rameswaram station, part of the same 17-station programme, though the announcement does not specify individual budgets or completion dates for stations other than Madurai Junction itself, nor a firm date for when the full ₹413 crore project will be complete.

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