MUMBAI, Nov. 9 -- It has been over three years since work on Amrit Bharat stations began and, yet, not a single suburban station on the Western Railway (WR) in Mumbai has been fully upgraded under this scheme, while the Central Railway (CR) has made much quicker progress. The scheme is a nationwide mission by the ministry of railways to modernise over 1,300 railway stations across the country into vibrant, modern transport hubs. Across both the Central and Western railways' suburban network in Mumbai, 38 stations are included - seven on the WR and five on the CR in phase one. On the Western Railway, seven stations have been taken up in phase one but work is proceeding at snail's pace. The seven stages earmarked for soft upgrades by the Railway Board in May 2023 are: Marine Lines, Charni Road, Grant Road, Lower Parel, Prabhadevi, Malad and Jogeshwari, with a total allocation of Rs.50 crore. The proposed improvements are upgrades to toilets, water coolers, foot overbridges (FOBs), booking offices, signage and platform surfacing. Facilities being developed include Braille signage, ramps, accessible toilets, drinking water booths, tactile guidance paths, yellow safety strips on platforms and colour-contrast painting to help senior citizens and passengers with disabilities. More significant renovations include roof plazas, executive lounges and permanent 'One Station One Product' stalls. However, at Marine Lines and Charni Road, visible improvements are largely limited to fresh paint on walls and new signboards. "Leakage problems at Lower Parel and Prabhadevi stations remain unresolved, while the circulating area at Jogeshwari continues to be in poor condition," said Mansoor Darvesh, president, Passenger and Traffic Relief Association. WR officials, however, claim, at Malad, 92% of the work is complete. Here, soft upgrades are underway along with an approved elevated booking office and deck. "Here, we are targeting completion by February next year, with facilities designed to be accessible to persons with disabilities. Work on constructing a permanent platform instead of the temporary one on Platform 1 is delayed due to the slow progress in the extension of the Harbour line till Borivali," said a WR official. At Marine Lines, a new 12-metre-wide FOB is being constructed to improve passenger movement along with lifts and overall cosmetic upkeep through painting. Sources said it was to be completed last month but at least 20% of work is pending. Likewise at Prabhadevi, Lower Parel and Grant Road; the railway is proceeding slowly despite its deadline being mid-2027. At Prabhadevi and Lower Parel, a 12-metre-wide FOB and 6-meter wide FOB at Grant Road along with lifts are being constructed whose work started 2-3 months ago. Earlier this weekend the WR opened an additional staircase on the west side of the south FOB at Prabhadevi that took them 80 days to complete after obtaining necessary NOC from the BMC. "At these sites, space is a major constraint. At Prabhadevi, there is a road on one side and a rail track on the other, leaving limited space for construction activities, movement of machinery and storage of materials. Moreover the presence of residential buildings has restricted work hours. The situation is similar at other locations," said the WR official. Underground electrical and other utility cables have also slowed work, the authorities claim. These need to be properly identified, protected from damage and carefully handled. Sources said water, electricity and gas pipelines also pass under the rail tracks and need to be handled with utmost care. The authorities say work at Jogeshwari station is complicated by ongoing work on a new terminus for long-distance trains. This is being constructed separately where two 6-metre FOBs, a platform for 24-coach trains, a station building and other facilities are being developed. A senior WR official said, "We have divided the facilities into 20-25 segments. The tendering process takes time, and funds are being released gradually." The second phase under the Amrit Bharat scheme includes Dadar, Kandivali and Dahisar stations, where approvals for various works were received this year. The Central Railway has seen faster progress. Major renovation work at five stations - Chinchpokli, Matunga, Parel, Wadala Road and Shahad - has been completed in the first phase. Railway officials said work is also underway at Byculla, Kurla, Vidyavihar, Vikhroli, Kanjurmarg, Mumbra, Diva, Titwala, Igatpuri and Sandhurst Road....