Lok Sabha Question No. 4389 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Lifts and Escalators for Solapur Railway Station
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Ms. Praniti Sushilkumar Shinde

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4389

TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.08.2025

## LIFTS AND ESCALATORS FOR SOLAPUR RAILWAY STATION

4389. MS. PRANITI SUSHILKUMAR SHINDE:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether the Government proposes to take steps to install functional lifts and escalators on all platforms at Solapur Railway station and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether there is a plan to introduce EV transportation for senior and differently-abled  passengers  at  the  said  station  and  if  so,  the  details thereof; and
- (c)  the  measures  taken/to  be  taken  to  regulate  traffic  and  ensure  safe, accessible entry and exit at the station premises?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) to (c): Solapur station, located in the state of Maharashtra, has been identified  for  development  under  Amrit  Bharat  Station  Scheme.  The works of improvement of circulating area, station building front elevation,  drainage,  entrance  lobby,  second  entry  booking  office  and circulating  area,  parking,  improvement  of  waiting  room,  water  booth, toilet,  platform  surfacing  and  ramp  for  existing  Foot  Over  Bridge  have been  completed.  The  works  of  new  toilet  block  and  Foot  Over  Bridge have  been  taken  up.  To  enhance  customer  experience  and  provide better amenities, Indian Railways has launched Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for redevelopment of stations with a long-term approach.

At  present,  02  escalators  and  03  lifts  have  been  provided  at  Solapur railway station.

The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their implementation  in  phases  to  improve  the  stations.  The  master planning includes:

-  Improvement of access to station and circulating areas
-  Integration of station with both sides of city
-  Improvement of station building
-  Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water booths
-  Provision of wider foot over bridge/air concourse commensurate with passenger traffic
-  Provision of lift/escalators/ramp
-  Improvement  /Provision  of  platform  surface  and  cover  over platforms
-  Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like 'One Station One Product'
-  Parking areas, Multimodal integration
-  Amenities for Divyangjans
-  Better passenger information systems.
-  Provision of executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings,  landscaping,  etc.  keeping  in  view  the  necessity  at each station

The  scheme  also  envisages  sustainable  and  environment  friendly solutions, provision  of  ballastless  tracks  etc.  as  per  necessity, phasing  and  feasibility  and  creation  of  city  centre  at  the  station  in the long term.

So  far,  1337  stations,  including  132  stations  located  in  the  state  of Maharashtra, have been identified for development under this scheme. The names of stations identified for development under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in the State of Maharashtra are as following:

| State       |   No. of Amrit Stations | Names of Amrit Stations                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
|-------------|-------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Maharashtra |                     132 | Ahmednagar, Ajni (Nagpur), Akalkot Road, Akola, Akurdi, Amalner, Amgaon, Amravati, Andheri, Badnera, Balharshah, Bandra Terminus, Baramati, Belapur, Bhandara Road, Bhokar, Bhusawal, Borivali, Byculla, Chalisgaon, Chanda Fort, Chandrapur, Charni Road, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Chinchpokli, Chinchwad, Dadar (CR), Dadar (WR), Dahisar, Daund, Dehu Road, Devlali, Dhamangaon, Dharangaon, Dharashiv, Dharmabad, Dhule, Diva, Dudhani, Gangakher, Godhani, Gondia, Grant Road, Hadapsar, Hatkanangale, Godhani, Gondia, Grant Road, Hadapsar, Hatkanangale, Hazur Sahib Nanded, Himayatnagar , Hinganghat, Hingoli Deccan, Igatpuri, Jalgaon, Jalna, Jeur, Jogeshwari, Kalyan |

| Jn, Kamptee, Kandivali, Kanjur Marg, Karad, Katol, Kedgaon, Kinwat , Kopargaon, Kurduwadi Jn, Kurla Jn, Lasalgaon, Latur, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Lonand Jn, Lonavla, Lower Parel, Malad, Malkapur, Manmad Jn, Manwath Road , Marine Lines, Matunga, Miraj Jn, Mudkhed Jn, Mumbai Central, Mumbra, Murtizapur Jn, Nagarsol , Nagpur Jn, Nandgaon, Nandura, Nandurbar, Narkher Jn, Nashik Road, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Itwari Junction, Pachora Jn, Palghar, Pandharpur, Panvel Jn, Parbhani Jn, Parel, Parli Vaijnath, Partur, Phaltan, Prabhadevi, Pulgaon Jn, Pune Jn, Purna Jn, Raver, Rotegaon , Sainagar Shirdi, Sandhurst Road, Sangli, Satara, Savda, Selu , Sewagram, Shahad, Shegaon, Shivaji Nagar Pune, Shri Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Terminus Kolhapur, Solapur, Talegaon, Thakurli, Thane, Titvala, Tumsar Road, Umri, Uruli, Vadala Road, Vidyavihar, Vikhroli, Wadsa, Wardha, Washim, Wathar   |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Development  works  at  railway  stations  under  Amrit  Bharat  Station Scheme in the state of Maharashtra have been taken up at a good pace. Till now, phase-I works of 15 stations (Amgaon, Chanda Fort, Chinchpokli, Devlali, Dhule, Kedgaon, Lasalgaon, Lonand Junction, Matunga, Murtizapur Junction, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Itwari Junction, Parel,

Savda,  Shahad  and  Vadala  Road)  in  the  state  of  Maharashtra  has  been completed under this scheme. The works at other stations have also been taken up at good pace and progress of some of the stations is as given below:

-  Palghar station: The works of new platform shelter on platform no. 2/3, platform  surfacing,  new  coping  blocks  and  tactile  pathway  on platform no. 2/3 have been completed. The works of site preparation for  new  station  building,  new  elevated  deck  and  new  Foot  Over Bridge have been taken up.
-  Mumbra  station:  The  works  of  platform  flooring  of  platform  no.  4, improvement  of  seating  arrangement  of  platform  no.  3,  flooring  of Foot Over Bridge, new  toilet block, sewage  treatment plant, development of circulating area on East side, improvement of ticket booking  office  and  toilet  block  have  been  completed.  The  work  of escalators on platform no. 1 has been taken up.
-  Diva  station:  The  works  of  redevelopment  of  circulating  area  and parking on East side, improvement to station building on East side, new  entry  gate,  improvement  to  Foot  Over  Bridge  at  East  side, construction  of  new  staircase  for  Foot  Over  Bridge  at  East  side, platform shelter of platform no. 7/8, platform raising and flooring of platform  no.  5/6  and  7/8,  new  toilet  block  and  sewage  treatment plant  on  West  side  have  been  completed.  The  works  of  new  toilet block of platform no. 7/8 and new 6 m Foot Over Bridge have been taken up.

Indian  Railways  is  committed  to  make  its  railway  stations  accessible for Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjans) and passengers with reduced mobility  as  part  of  'Sugamya  Bharat  Mission'  or  'Accessible  India Campaign'  of  Government  of  India.  In  compliance  of  the  Rights  of

Persons  with  Disabilities  Act,  2016,  'Guidelines  on  accessibility  of Indian  Railway  stations  and  facilities  at  stations  for  differently  abled persons  (Divyangjans)  and  passengers  with  reduced  mobility'  have been  circulated  and  notified  in  the  Gazette  of  India.  The  guidelines include  provisions  of  facilities  for  Divyangjans  and  passengers  with reduced  mobility  such  as  entrance  ramps,  accessible  parking,  low height  ticket  counters/help  booths,  toilets,  drinking  water  booths, subways/foot over bridges with ramps/lifts, standard signages including Braille signages and tactile pathways for visual impairment, etc. which are  being  provided  in  a  phased  manner  and  on  the  principles  of reasonable accommodation.

Further  development /  redevelopment  /  upgradation  /  modernisation  of stations  on  Indian  Railways  is  a  continuous  and  ongoing  process  and works  in  this  regard  are  undertaken  as  per  requirement,  subject  to inter-se priority and availability of funds. The priority for development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of stations is accorded to higher category of station over lower category of station while sanctioning and executing the works.

Development  /  upgradation  of  railway  stations  is  complex  in  nature involving safety of passengers & trains  and requires various statutory clearances  such  as  fire clearance, heritage, tree cutting, airport clearance  etc.  The  progress  also  gets  affected  due  to  brown  field related challenges such as shifting of utilities (involving water/sewage lines,  optical  fibre  cables,  gas  pipe  lines,  power/signal  cables,  etc.), infringements, operation of trains without hindering passenger movement,  speed  restrictions  due  to  works  carried out in  close proximity of tracks and high voltage power lines, etc. and these factors affect the completion time. Therefore, no time frame can be indicated at this stage.

Development / upgradation / modernisation of stations including under Amrit  Bharat  Station  Scheme  is  generally  funded  under  Plan  Head-53 'Customer Amenities'. The details of allocation and expenditure under Plan Head-53 are maintained Zonal Railway-wise and not work-wise, or station wise or state-wise. The state of Maharashtra is covered under the  jurisdiction  of  four  railway  zones,  namely  Central  Railway,  South Central Railway, South East Central Railway and Western Railway. For these  zones,  an  allocation  of  ₹  3,751  crore  has  been  made  for  the financial year 2025-26, out of which an expenditure (up to July, 2025) of ₹ 1,170 crore has been incurred so far.

Further, following steps are being taken by the Railways in coordination with GRP/Local Police for safety and security of passengers at stations: (i)  For  immediate  assistance  passengers  can  make  complaint  on  Rail Madad  Portal  directly  or  through  Helpline  Number  139  (integrated  with Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) No. 112). (ii) Railways are in regular touch with passengers through various social media  platforms  viz. twitter,  facebook  etc.  to  enhance  security  of passengers and to address their security concern. (iii)  Frequent  announcements are made through Public Address System to  educate  passengers  to  take  precautions  against  theft,  snatching, drugging etc. (iv)  Surveillance  is  kept  through  CCTV  cameras  provided  at  railway stations for enhanced security of passengers.

- (v)  State  Level  Security  Committee  of  Railways  (SLSCR)  have  been constituted  for  all  State/Union  Territories  under  the  Chairmanship  of respective Director General of Police/Commissioner of States/Union

Territories for regular monitoring and review of security arrangements of the Railways. (vi) Coordination with GRP/State Police and concerned railway departments are made for ensuring crowd management. (vii) Vulnerability assessment  is  done across railway stations and accordingly Government Railway Police (GRP) & Railway Protection Force (RPF) staff are deployed to the extent possible at sensitive locations to regulate  crowd  smoothly  during  the  heavy  rush  period  and  render  real time assistance to passengers. (viii) GRP & RPF staff is deployed at foot-over bridges to regulate crowd smoothly in order to avoid stampede like situation during the heavy rush period and render real time assistance to passengers.

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