Railways' first movable freshwater tunnel aquarium opens for public at Bengaluru railway station

In a unique initiative, Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Ltd (IRSDC) opened Railways' first movable freshwater tunnel aquarium at KSR Bengaluru railway station on Thursday.

It is a joint venture of IRSDC and the HNi Aquatic Kingdom based on the Amazon River concept, which is said to make passenger's waiting time at the station pleasurable and promises to be a visual treat.

In addition to enhancing the passenger experience, the initiative would be a revenue earner for Indian Railways. A nominal entry fee of Rs 25 has been kept per passenger.

The aquarium was opened for the public today by Mohd Ismail and a girl child Samriddhi Jain, the first visitors to the aquarium, in the presence of senior Railway and IRSDC officials.

Talking about this project, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of IRSDC, SK Lohia said that IRSDC has always been at the forefront in launching path-breaking initiatives. "It is our endeavour to transform Indian Railways by re/developing stations at par with Airports and also enhance passenger delight with our excellent facility management initiatives; wherein even the waiting time will become a pleasurable experience for the passengers and visitors rather than being mundane," he said.

This Aquatic Kingdom will entice passengers and visitors and it will not only be an enjoyable experience but, also educative to experience a life-size kingdom of fishes here. Even following strict COVID related protocols, up to 25 visitors can visit the aquarium at a time, he added.

It is notable that the 12-feet long Aquatic Kingdom is Indian Railway's first caldarium housing myriad flora and fauna and will be a must-visit spot. The entrance of the Aquatic Kingdom gives a glimpse into the marine life, with a beautiful dolphin humbly greeting visitors with a slight bow and a smile. 3D selfie area, 20 feet of glass periphery are some attractive features of this Aquatic Kingdom. It is also home to various aquatic animals such as alligator gar ranging, stingrays, sharks, lobsters, snails and shrimps. The aquarium is adorned with natural rocks and splashes of driftwood, artificial coral rocks.

According to the a senior official, IRSDC has been entrusted with the mandate to undertake facility management at five railway stations namely, KSR Bengaluru, Pune, Anand Vihar, Chandigarh and Secunderabad to enhance customer experience and make travel a safe and hassle-free experience. It is an effort to redefine passenger experience and set a benchmark in development, redevelopment, operation and maintenance of railway stations in India.

IRSDC is a joint venture company of RLDA, RITES and IRCON. IRSDC is at the core of Indian Railway's mission of transforming the country's railway stations into world-class 24x7 hubs and is the Nodal Agency and the main Project Development Agency (PDA) for the redevelopment of Railway stations. These redeveloped hubs will be called 'Railopolis', as it will attract huge investment and business opportunities. IRSDC has many firsts to its credit in the facility management, including 'Water from Air' Water Vending Machine, Fit India Squat Kiosk, Eat Right Station with the highest rating, digital locker, generic medicine shop, mobile charging kiosk, a retail store by a startup in Indian Railways and a food truck. In addition, it will be undertaking facility management of 90 more stations in a phased manner.

( With inputs from ANI )