Description : Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) is a historic railway station of the Mumbai suburban railway, as well as for some long-distance trains. It serves as the headquarters of the Central Railways in India and is one of the busiest railway stations in India. The building was made a World Heritage Site because its Victorian Gothic Revival and traditional Indian features, as well as its advanced structural and technical solutions.
The station was designed by Frederick William Stevens, a consulting architect in 1887-1888 for a princely sum of 16.14 lakhs in those days. Stevens earned the commission to construct the station after a masterpiece watercolour sketch by draughtsman Axel Herman. After earning the commission, Stevens went on a ten-month trip to Europe to make a detailed study of the stations there. St Pancras station in London bears some resemblance to Victoria Terminus.
It took 10 years to complete and was originally named "Victoria Terminus" in honour of the reigning Queen Victoria. In 1996, in response to demands by the Shiv Sena and in keeping with the policy of renaming locations with Indian names, the station was renamed by the state government after Chhatrapati Shivaji, a famed 17th century Maratha king. Since the moniker Victoria Terminus, or VT, has been long-standing, its use among the city inhabitants is still widespread.
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