Project to redevelop Cantonment and Yeshwantpur stations fails to take off

BENGALURU: The Bengaluru Cantonment and Yeshwantpur Railway Station Redevelopment project, touted as a great opportunity for the real estate industry, has failed to take off. The South Western Railway (SWR) couldn't attract any bidder even as some builders completed joint surveys and inspections.

The SWR authorities in Bengaluru division had invited applications for redevelopment in May and the last date for sending proposals was June 1. Now, the authorities have decided to keep the window open for bids till September 30. "Initially, we thought many players would be interested in redeveloping land available around these stations, and a number of builders conducted surveys and inspections. We haven't got any serious bidder yet; some of them have sought more time so we've extended the dates," said R K Saxena, divisional railway manager, Bengaluru division, SWR. He said the tenders, which have been prepared by SWR, will be floated only after the proposal bids come in.

The project is part of the railway ministry's larger modernization plan for 23 stations in the city announced in February . The project includes monetization of the available railway land, building amenities and upgrading the station premises like that of airports.

While Cantonment station has 2.25 acres that could be redeveloped for commercial complex and parking spaces, Yeshwantpur has 20 acres attached to the railway premises.

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