page_title: Secunderabad Junction railway station
section_title: Future
hierarchical_section_title: Secunderabad Junction railway station / Future
caption_attribution_description: English: The back gate of Secunderabad Railway Station.
context_page_description: Secunderabad Junction, is a major intercity railway station and a commuter rail hub in the Hyderabad urban area. In the city centre, the station is in the South Central Railway zone of Indian Railways. Built in 1874 by the Nizam of Hyderabad during the British era, it was the main station of Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway until the Kachiguda railway station opened in 1916. The station was taken over by Indian Railways in 1951, when NGSR was nationalized. Its main portico and concourse are influenced by Nizamesque architecture. The station, which resembles a fort, is a tourist attraction in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.
  It is connected by rail to all regions of India. About 170,000 passengers arrive at the station daily on 229 trains. On the Vijayawada–Wadi and Secunderabad-Manmad railway lines, it is the zone headquarters of the South Central Railway and the headquarters of the SCR's Secunderabad Division. The station has received ISO-9001 certification for quality management in ticket booking, parcel and luggage booking and platform management. Indian Railways has proposed an upgrade to a world-class station, emphasising vertical expansion.
context_section_description: During the 2008–09 Indian Railways budget session, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav unveiled a design to improve the two-century-old Secunderabad Junction station at a cost of ₹40 billion ($1 billion). In the 2009-10 budget hearing, Mamata Banerjee listed 50 stations (including Secunderabad) to upgrade to world-class facilities. According to the Rail Ministry, the upgrade would be similar to Roma Termini (Rome's central rail station). Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy proposed developing the Gandhi Hospital land adjoining the station along the lines of Toronto's Union Station, which was developed into a major commuter terminus, a commercial hub and a parking facility.
  Similar to an airport, the proposed station would have a shopping mall, a food plaza, entertainment and recreation centres. The plan includes vertical expansion of the station, with platforms on several floors connected by escalators and lifts. Separation of arriving and departing commuters and integration of the proposed integrated bus terminus (IBT) and metro service will be key ingredients of the upgrade. The station's current security apparatus might be overhauled. Lighting, seating areas, waiting rooms, bathrooms and Internet kiosks would be upgraded.
  Since about 170,000 passengers commute through Secunderabad on 229 trains daily, the project needs to be developed with an eye to the next century; Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee concurred in June 2009, when she presented the maiden 2009–10 Rail Budget.
  Preservationists fear that the massive upgrade may leave the heritage building a memory of a bygone era, since ₹85 million has already been spent on station improvements.
  A series of meetings was convened with Railway Board authorities in July 2009. It was decided to hire a consultant to sketch a master plan for the project, including facilities to be incorporated, a time frame and estimated cost. Global tenders for consultants were issued on 26 September, and the successful bidder (who would have ten months to propose a master plan) would be selected on 30 October. The request for tender deadline was extended to 24 December and then indefinitely, due to a lack of bidders.
  The station's south side is planned for development with a number of facilities. A new building is being designed with four floors, of which the first and second have been completed at a cost of ₹22 million. In the 2009–10 Rail Budget, Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee introduced a non-stop Duronto Express from Secunderabad to New Delhi.
caption: South entrance
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