Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of 508 railway stations at a cost of over Rs 244.70 billion under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme across the country through video conferencing. During the event, he mentioned that each Amrit Station would symbolise the modern aspirations and ancient heritage of its respective city. He also informed that around 1300 major railway stations in India would now be developed as Amrit Bharat Railway Stations, and the work on the redevelopment of 508 of these stations had commenced that day. Modi stated that approximately Rs 250 billion would be spent on the redevelopment of these stations, which would significantly enhance the Railways infrastructure. He further noted that the budgetary support for the Railways had been increased by five times compared to 2014, now standing at Rs 2.40 trillion. According to him, this marked the beginning of a new era of development in the history of Indian Railways, benefiting all the common citizens of the country. Modi also mentioned that India's credibility had increased globally, and the world's attitude towards India had changed. The Prime Minister emphasized the Government's priority on expanding the railway network in the northeastern States. He highlighted the progress in electrification, track doubling, and construction of new routes. Criticizing the Opposition, he remarked that they had never appreciated the developmental work, whether it was the construction of the new Parliament building, the Statue of Unity, or the redevelopment of Kartavya Path. He stressed the need to transcend negative politics, as India was progressing on the path of positive politics as a mission. In his opening statements, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw mentioned that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had accorded significant priority to the railways over the last nine years. Vaishnaw expressed that these new railway stations would offer world-class amenities to passengers. He attributed the unprecedented development of the past nine years to the Prime Minister's vision for India's development. These 508 stations are located across 27 States and union territories. This includes 55 stations each in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, 49 in Bihar, 44 in Maharashtra, 37 in West Bengal, 34 in Madhya Pradesh, 32 in Assam, and 25 in Odisha, among others. The redevelopment will ensure modern passenger amenities, well-designed traffic circulation, inter-modal integration, and well-designed signage for passenger guidance. The station buildings' design will draw inspiration from local culture, heritage, and architecture. Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also mentioned that railway stations were being redeveloped to facilitate multi-modal connectivity across the country in line with the Prime Minister's vision. Speaking to the media in New Delhi, Vaishnaw stated that the redevelopment work of these railway stations was underway and that 9,000 engineers had been trained to develop modern railway stations. He added that the layout plan for around 700 railway stations was underway and would be implemented in the next phase. Vaishnaw stressed that his ministry was dedicated to realising PM Modi's vision of providing a world-class public transport experience to every section of society.