It refers to reports regarding new look of the New Delhi Railway Station again in coming months. But whole exercise is just part-utilisation of heavily-spent funds till a space occupied by UP Roadways in vicinity of the area is handed over to railways for developing prime-most railway station of capital city of India for an international look. UP Roadways can be given alternate plot in vicinity of some inter-state bus-terminal in the city. Even now buses of UP Roadways run empty to the area occupied by it in vicinity of New Delhi Railways Station after emptying the passengers at some inter-state bus-terminal. Such a shift will be advantageous to UP Roadways itself because of saving of diesel and staff-hours in uselessly running empty buses to a place most needed to Railways for the development of New Delhi Railway Station. Otherwise also, such removal of UP Roadways bus-terminal from a site surrounded on all sides by New Delhi Railway station like an island will be in tune with central-government policy to keep heavy vehicles out of the populated capital-city as far as possible.
It is indeed regretting that the matter is kept on hanging between Railways and UP state government for last so many decades as if it may be a matter involving two different nations. Now since both central and state governments have same ruling parties, matter should be sorted out urgently. Even rail-passengers of UP will be largely benefitted by such handing over land by UP Roadways to Railways in lieu of some mutually agreed plot in the capital.
Madhu Agrawal
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
