The Kolkata Metro on Wednesday went through a tunnel under a river for the first time in the country, a senior official said here. The Metro rake, carrying only officers and engineers, ran under the Hooghly from Kolkata to Howrah on the other side of the river.
Of the 16.6 km length of the East-West Metro, the underground corridor is 10.8 km between Howrah Maidan and Phoolbagan, with the tunnel passing under the Hooghly River. Whereas, according to a KMRC official, the rest is an elevated corridor.
This is a “revolutionary step” in providing a modern transport system to the people of Kolkata and its suburbs, the official said.
Metro Railway General Manager P Uday Kumar Reddy travelled from Mahakaran station in Kolkata to Howrah Maidan station of the East-West Metro corridor in the rake.
Later, another rake also reached Howrah Maidan station by the same route.
Terming it a ‘historic event’, the Metro general manager said, “Trial runs between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade station will be conducted for the next seven months, following which regular services on this stretch will begin.”
Trial runs on the 4.8 km stretch of the underground section will commence soon, the official said.
After this stretch becomes operational, Howrah Maidan will be the deepest Metro station – 33 meters below the surface – of the country.
The Metro is expected to cover the 520-metre stretch under the river Hooghly in 45 seconds, he said, adding that this tunnel under the river is 32 metres below the water surface level.
The East-West Metro corridor connecting Howrah Maidan and Sector V, the Information Technology hub in Salt Lake, is partially operational – between Sealdah and Sector V stations.
Completion of the total project has been delayed owing to accidents in the Bowbazar area of central Kolkata.
On August 31, 2019, a tunnel boring machine (TBM) hit an aquifer leading to severe ground subsidence and the collapse of several buildings at Bowbazar.
