Commuters in Kolkata will get immense relief and an unparalleled experience once the city gets India’s first underwater metro service in a year’s time. As per the latest update from the Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC), the East-West Metro Corridor project is expected to reach completion by December 2023.
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From becoming India’s first city to get metro rail in 1984, Kolkata is now set to be graced with another infrastructural first in the underwater metro tunnel. The metro service is now being expanded to cover the entire West Bengal capital city, including the areas in the outskirts.
The metro will run underwater to cross the Hooghly river and connect the twin cities of Kolkata and Howrah. It will also connect the busy Howrah and Sealdah railway stations. It will also connect Kolkata Metro’s north-south line at Esplanade. The East West Metro Corridor will run from Salt Lake Sector V’s IT hub to Howrah Maidan on the other side of the river.
German machines and experts have been deployed for the difficult construction of the tunnel which is currently in progress. The underground metro project is being made at a cost of Rs 120 crore per kilometre. The cost of manufacturing the tunnel deep inside Hooghly is coming around Rs 157 crore per kilometre. The length of the tunnel is 520-metres. Its depth is 13 metre below the Hooghly riverbed and 33 metre below the ground level. Commuters will get to travel underwater for around 45 seconds in a unique experience.
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The project has suffered some delays and some rehabilitation projects are underway. The twin tunnels under water are expected to be commissioned in December 2023 once the 2.5-km Esplanade-Sealdah stretch is completed.
Once operational, the route will cut down travel time between Howrah and Sealdah by 50 minutes. Time taken currently is around 1.5 hours by road, which will come down to 40 minutes by the metro. For passenger safety, two emergency evacuation shafts will be made in the Howrah station and Strand Road.
