Ranchi station will soon have air-conditioned retiring rooms with attached toilets

If all goes well, a 26-room facility for which groundwork is underway, will debut by this year-end.

Talking to this paper on Tuesday, senior divisional commercial rail manager Niraj Kumar said they decided to convert the loss-making Yatri Nivas, also a retiring room facility, would be converted to premium retiring rooms.

'Unfortunately, Yatri Nivas located on the first floor of the main station building didn't do as well as expected, as is closed for years. But, sensing the need for safe and comfortable accommodation facilities in the station, we have now decided to convert it into a set of retiring rooms,' he said.

The old Yatri Nivas did not have ACs or attached toilets.

Tenders for the project have been floated and bids will be opened in the first week of November, he said.

'After that, it would take us about a month's time to refurbish the place,' Kumar said. 'We are targeting a December-end launch.'

The senior railway official added that as the basic building was in place, it would not have taken much time for the revamp.

'All that we require to do are jobs such as wall denting, white wash, installing air-conditions, fixing broken washroom pipes or repairing beds and sofas as per requirement, which won't take much time and resources,' he said.

Currently, Ranchi station has only a 16-bed AC dormitory with common toilets.

It is almost always packed to capacity, compelling visitors to opt for hotels nearby who charge variable rates.

'Once the new retiring room debuts, it will greatly help people. We will try to make the rates pocket-friendly to suit every strata of passengers,' Kumar said.

Once the Ranchi retiring rooms are in place, the railways will train their focus on nearby Hatia station to upgrade similar facilities.

Currently, Hatia station has a small retiring room without air-conditioning. It also needs proper upkeep.