The Ayodhya Junction railway station, also known as the Ayodhya Dham Junction railway station, is a railway station located in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, in the city of Ayodhya. It is one of the city's two railway junction stations; the other is called Faizabad Junction. The station is under the Indian Railways' Northern Railway zone. "AY" is the station code.
History
As a part of the Lucknow–Gorakhpur line, the station was constructed in 1874 by the British during their colonial rule. It is one of the busiest and most significant railway stations in Uttar Pradesh, as well as one of the oldest in all of India. It is one of the top 100 Indian Railways stations for booking train tickets and rail travel. 64 trains will go through the station in total. By December 2023,
Two Vande Bharat Express trains run to and from the station: the Gorakhpur–Lucknow Charbagh Vande Bharat Express and the Anand Vihar Terminal–Ayodhya Vande Bharat Express. Ayodhya is a stop on the Darbhanga–Anand Vihar Terminal Amrit Bharat Express, which was the first Amrit Bharat Express in India.
Construction of the railway station.
The station has been expanding since Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone on August 5, 2020, adding double railway lines, strengthening the electrification of the tracks to accommodate more high-capacity long-distance trains, and building a new station building next to the current building, among many other facilities.
The Ministry of Railways and the Government of Uttar Pradesh considered redeveloping the station as a cutting-edge, modern station in 2019, and the station was included in the New design would preserve the station's temple-like appearance while adding new amenities and boosting capacity to accommodate the increased passenger volume anticipated as a result of the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
The train station features a variety of architectural designs that have been inspired by Hindu temple architecture, including the ' mukut' (crown) of Lord Ram and the 'chakra', which stands for the sun. Inspired by the Janaki Mandir in Nepal, two shikaras are located on the roof, with seven mandapas tucked in between them.
It was anticipated that the station's first phase of reconstruction would be finished by June 2021. Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially opened the first phase on December 30, 2023, when it had been finished in full. The second phase, which will take two to three years to finish, started building in December 2023 with the concourse.
