BENGALURU: After a tunnel aquarium at KSR Bengaluru City railway station, South Western Railway is planning an ocean-themed restaurant at Yeshwantpur station.
Sources said SWR’s Bengaluru division, along with HNi Enterprises, a private firm, is planning to set up a railway aquarium complex at Yeshwantpur. It will have several facilities, including a mini-restaurant.
Bengaluru divisional railway manager Ashok Kumar Verma said: “This will be a new concept. But we can’t call it an underwater restaurant. It is more like the one in Singapore where people can eat while enjoying a view of marine animals. Yeshwantpur has enough space but it’s still in the planning stage.” If the plan materialises, Yeshwantpur will be the first railway station in the country to have such a restaurant.
Syed Hamid Hassan, managing partner of HNi Enterprises, said: “A proposal has been sent to SWR. The modalities are being worked out, but a final decision is yet to be taken. It will be more interactive and bigger than the existing tunnel aquarium at KSR Bengaluru City railway station.”
An SWR official said a 3,735 sqft area at Yeshwantpur has been allotted to the firm. “We have issued Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) to the firm for a tunnel aquarium, fish foot spa and natural paludarium under the New, Innovative Non Fare Revenue Ideas Scheme (NINFRIS). The tenure is for a year and could be extended by another year with DRM approval. The firm also wants a pool pond cafeteria, which is under process,” the official explained.
Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation along with the firm opened the tunnel aquarium at KSR Bengaluru City, the first such facility among railway stations in the country, on July 1. “Every day, 250-300 people visit this 12-ft long tunnel aquarium. The entry fee is Rs 25 and we only allow 25 people at a time,” said an IRSDC official.
Fish foot spa, drug store at KSR Bengaluru City station
IRSDC, which manages KSR Bengaluru City railway station, is planning to come up with a slew of facilities. Officials said they want to replicate the concept of The Quad by BLR, an open-air food & beverage area at Kempegowda International Airport, which also hosts live events.
A fish pedicure facility and gaming zone are also being planned. IRSDC will install a Fit India squat kiosk at the station as part of the Centre’s Fit India campaign. “If any passenger manages to complete 30 squats on the machine in 180 seconds, he/she will get a platform ticket for free,” said an official.
The station will also get Dawa Dost, a store which will sell generic medicines at discounted rates. “We will set up a food court. The station already has outlets like EatFit and IBrew,” said an official.
