BARAMATI: Born and raised in
Baramati
, Poornima Kale has never boarded a train from her hometown. The 32-year-old woman hopes her five-year-old daughter would break the jinx some day and take a train to Delhi.
The railway station in Baramati - the political bastion of the Pawars which is in for a keen contest this Lok Sabha election following the split in
NCP
- is in a shambles, while the town boasts of a swanky bus terminus.
Barely four passenger trains chug out from the two shadeless wobbly platforms a day. Two of them ply up to Daund and the other two to Pune.
"Trains take over three hours to reach Pune, and the service is limited. Buses are plentiful throughout the day. The new Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus terminus is spick-and-span. In contrast, the railway station lacks basic amenities. We never feel like taking trains," says Rajat Deshpande, a trader.
Baramati made its stamp on the national political map as the hometown of veteran politician
Sharad Pawar
three decades ago.
Besides NCP(SCP) chief Sharad Pawar, nephew
Ajit Pawar
and daughter
Supriya Sule
have represented Baramati in Parliament. However, the town's railway network is yet to spread wings. This LS election, NCP has fielded
Sunetra Pawar
, wife of party chief and deputy CM Ajit Pawar, against NCP (SCP)'s Supriya Sule.
Imtiaz Latif Shikalkar, a political observer, says, "Baramati has a superb bus and road network. Hardly anyone felt the need for trains."
Rickety boundary of the Baramati railway station is unlikely to boost the confidence of any passengers. "As you trudge towards the platform, you will pass by three booking counters on your right. Two of them mostly remain unmanned. A booking clerk sits idle in the only computerised reservation counter at the station. Worse, washrooms are out of bounds for passengers. But we take pride in our new bus terminus with hygienic toilets," says Abhishek Mane, a state government employee.
Outstation students differ because they get concessions on trains. Piyush Galgat, pursuing nursing in a college in Pawars' town, says, "Baramati has a bus stop like an airport, on which state govt has spent Rs50 crore. But its railway station is a pity. I often travel from Baramati to Pune for an onward train to my hometown Chandrapur. At times, I feel crazy while travelling in those MEMU (Mainline Electric Multiple Unit) coaches."
There is a slice of hope. Additional divisional railway manager (ADRM), Pune, BK Singh says, "The Baramati railway station has been included in the Centre's Amrit Bharat station redevelopment scheme. The master plan for refurbishing the facility has been finalised. Within eight to 10 months, the Baramati station will shape up."
The official says, "The budget for the station's redevelopment project is Rs11.4 crore. The plan includes provision for entrance gate, portico with improved facade, covered pedestrian pathway from the parking space to the station's entrance and fully covered platforms."
Homemaker Kale's hope of her daughter boarding a train from Baramati to the national capital hinges on the execution of the Amrit Bharat scheme. "I wish our town gets better railway connectivity soon, though the much hyped 'One Station, One Product' stall on the platform is still shut," she says.
(With inputs from
Joy Sengupta in Pune)
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