Inside the glass edifice of Bengaluru’s first centrally air-conditioned railway terminus, commuters strain in the intense heat

The Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) at Baiyappanahalli was constructed at an expense of Rs 314 crore with the intention of offering rail passengers the amenities of an airport. It was designed to resemble the elegant and sophisticated Kempegowda International Airport. Within two years of its introduction, the fantastic experience it was supposed to provide passengers with has been destroyed by poor maintenance on all fronts.

The first completely air-conditioned concourse area in India, with the ticketing area, waiting areas, and food outlets on the ground level, was designed with this in mind. Within its borders, a building has three chilling plants erected for its use. Bengaluru’s everyday high temperatures cause a great deal of annoyance to the people since these plants often experience problems.

“One of them is not working while two do,” a source said.

According to a different source, one plant was operating while the other two were not. A train official said, “The concourse area is huge and one feels cool inside if all three plants work.”

When the reporter went to the terminal, he discovered that large blowers at the far end of the facility were only partially successful in forcing air inside. The station seems overheated overall, mostly because of its glass doors and facade, as well as the lack of windows.

According to a person with knowledge of station operations, the air conditioning is turned off every day between 10.30 pm and 8.30 am. It is likely that railroad authorities are attempting to save energy. He said in a hypothetical manner, “Why spend so much if they want to economize?”

The ticket checkers’ area contains fans and a cooler, whereas the Station Master’s chamber has a wall-mounted fan. There are people waiting in this stuffy waiting area, and the air conditioning and fans are broken.

“Multiple complaints have been received in the last two months from SMVT officials that the public is upset over the heat inside the station,” said a railway official in the DRMs office. There have also been complaints on social media.

Passenger Mumeer-ul-Alum said, “It is quite hot inside,” as she arrived 16 hours early to join the Doronto Express, which leaves the next day. I recall calling SMVT “an airport railway station.”

Passenger Anita Tiwari said to TNIE, “Don’t you feel like it’s hot everywhere? There isn’t even an air conditioner, window, or fan here.

There are often 14 pairs of trains arriving and departing every day, with daily foot traffic reaching 30,000. According to an official, “this figure shoots up by 3,000 or 4,000 during festive time.” Popular long-distance trains from here include the Guwahati Express, the Howrah Express, and the Sangamitra Express to Bihar.

There was a leak in a chilled water pipeline.

Parikshit Mohanpuria, Additional Divisional Railway Manager, Administration, Bengaluru Division, stated: “There was a problem with the chiller plant at SMVT. The chilled water was leaking from the subterranean pipeline that was supplying it to the Air Handling Unit.” The station had cooling problems as a result of this very little breach in the casing. Nevertheless, the leak was discovered and stopped recently, and two chiller plants are now operational.”

The cooling system is being influenced by the sudden rise in city temperatures and the increasing foot traffic at the station, the ADRM said. Efforts are being made to maintain control over the interior air conditioning temperature.

There are many more issues. The luggage scanner isn’t functioning properly, and the government railway police who are supposed to be stationed there are happily conversing on their phones while the members of the railway protection force are nowhere to be seen. People are casually bringing in many bags without checking them.