The Indian Railways assigned the redevelopment of 49 additional railway stations across the country to the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA). A statement from RLDA said that some of these stations are Mathura, Bikaner, Bhopal, Rajkot, Amravati, Agra Fort and Kurukshetra. As per RLDA, it is already developing 60 railway stations under the Smart Cities project of the Central government. Ved Parkash Dudeja, RLDA Vice-Chairman, told the media that they look forward to the mandate and that the redevelopment of the station is intrinsically linked to urban rejuvenation. He also said that the redevelopment of these stations would offer world-class amenities to passengers and improve their travel experience. Additionally, he said that it would also lead to a multiplier effect on the local economy to increase real estate, retail and tourism and create employment opportunities. He mentioned that RLDA is steadfastly committed to delivering these stations according to the schedule to fulfil the aspirations of new India as a responsible organisation. RLDA recently successfully completed a Request for Qualification (RFQ) for the Lucknow and Puri Railway Stations, floating tenders from eligible developers to participate in the redevelopment process, and it said that the project received encouraging response from the investors and developers. Additionally, it said that RFQ was finalised to redevelop the Nellore, Puducherry, New Delhi, Dehradun, Tirupati and Ernakulam Railway Station, and RFPs will shortly be issued and that these stations will be developed under the PPP model. The Indian Railways has vacant land of around 43,000 hectares across India. Currently, the RLDA is dealing with 84 railway colony redevelopment projects and leased out three railway colonies recently in Guwahati and Secunderabad for redevelopment. Image Source Also read: RLDA floats tender to lease vacant land parcel in Guwahati Also read: Charbagh railway station redevelopment gets seven prospective bidders Also read: Indian Railways to raise funds via land lease near Howrah station