Rail Land Development Authority to be classified as local urban body

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₹2,835 crore have already been awarded. Bids for another 84 plots worth over ₹7,500 crore are expected in the next 18 months. This designation is anticipated to prevent delays in these projects.

“We have written to ministry of housing and urban affairs to recognize the RLDA as a local authority and ask states to give this status. Other state governments are also being pursued by RLDA to issue similar instruction," said a railway ministry official on condition of anonymity. Questions sent to ministry of railways and RLDA remained unanswered till press time.

Prashant Thakur, regional director & head of research at Anarock Group, believes this move could streamline station redevelopment, offering RLDA more autonomy and reducing dependency on state and local bodies. However, it's important to balance rapid development with environmental and social considerations. A 2019 MoHUA directive to treat RLDA on par with local authorities for land use and development projects saw limited impact, with only a few states recognizing RLDA's authority.

The fresh push by the railways seeks nationwide acknowledgment of RLDA as a local urban body, facilitating seamless development of surplus railway land and aiding states with land development plans. This step is also crucial for the National Monetization Pipeline, aimed at monetizing ₹6 trillion in government assets by FY25. The railways, with a target of over ₹1.5 trillion, have seen modest progress, primarily through rail land development and commercial development of land parcels.