Indian Railways is part of our colonial heritage with some of the finest buildings serving as railway stations. Bombay Victoria Terminus Station now known as ‘Chattrapati Shivaji Terminus’ has been declared a UNESCO heritage site. Indian railways endeavors to bring the best to the traveler. Though a number of ameneties and customer conveniences have been provided, sometimes we are not aware of the amenities and accordingly are not able to utilize them to our advantage. This is an attempt by ‘The Other Home’ team to bridge this gap.
Charbagh Railway Station, Lucknow (@Rajarshi)
Waiting and retiring rooms
If you are facing delays in your journeys due to any reason; you can avail of the retiring rooms and waiting rooms at railway stations at reasonable rates. Bookings for these rooms can be done at the station manager’s office on production of a valid ticket. There is also guest room facility for passengers travelling at night on major stations itself. So no more spending on hotels and living in scare of missing the train.
Food
Comesum – Railway Station
Catering facilities including refreshments rooms, tea stalls, snack bars, automatic vending machines (beverages) are available at stations. Rates are prescribed by railway administration and are very reasonable. In Delhi, Comesum 24×7 restaurants at the railway stations have become hub spots for all nocturnal birds.
Book / stalls and other conveniences
A.H. Wheeler & Co. – Bookstore (@Wikipedia)
There are book stalls at major stations for passengers. These bookstalls have newspapers, magazines, comic books etc. AH Wheeler & Co (P) Ltd, is Indian owned company owning a bookstore chain that was co-founded by Emile Moreau, a French author and T K Banerjee, an Indian businessman and some others in Allahabad in 1887. The first store was opened at Allahabad station in 1877. In 2004 it had bookstores at 258 railway stations all over India. Any veteran railway traveler in India will vouch for AH Wheeler and company.
Enquiry
There is enquiry office at every station for handling passenger queries related to train timings, train tickets availability etc.
Medical rooms
In case of medical emergencies there are medical rooms for the passengers with doctor available at all times to assure immediate attention at all major train stations.
Cloak room
In case you do not wish to carry it into the city and intend picking it up on your return, ‘Cloak Room’ facility is provided at each station for brief storage of your luggage on payment. So next time you have some time on your hand at the railway station in between changing trains, store your luggage and explore the city.
Facilities for physically challenged
Indian railways enables journey of differently abled people by provisioning of standard ramps with railings for barrier free entry, earmarking at least one parking lot for two vehicles used by physically challenged persons, provision of a non – slippery walkway from parking lot to the building, provision of signages of appropriate-visibility, provision of at least one drinking water tap suitable for use by a differently abled person and provision of at least one toilet on the ground floor.
I know that much leaves to be desired but things are improving at a very fast pace. Mahatama Gandhi used Indian Railways to explore India. The appeal of this remains true even after so many years. Rail track arteries running through the length and breadth of the country are perhaps the best way to discover where India’s heart lies and what makes it tick. I always couple my journeys with homestays to help my discovery, explore the milieu and be the eternal ‘Glocal’ (Traval Global, Think Local).
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