India’s First Underwater Metro: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inaugurated the Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section of the East-West Corridor of Kolkata Metro. This under-water metro tunnel will run between Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section.
India’s First Underwater Metro: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section of the East-West Corridor of Kolkata Metro. This under-water metro tunnel will run between Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section. Kolkata Metro Howrah Maidan-Esplanade Tunnel is the first transport tunnel to be built under any river in India. This Howrah metro station is the deepest metro station in India.
#WATCH पश्चिम बंगाल: प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी ने कवि सुभाष मेट्रो, माझेरहाट मेट्रो, कोच्चि मेट्रो, आगरा मेट्रो, मेरठ-आरआरटीएस सेक्शन, पुणे मेट्रो, एस्प्लेनेड मेट्रो-कोलकाता से मेट्रो रेलवे सेवाओं को हरी झंडी दिखाई। https://t.co/S9e12I1kgP pic.twitter.com/n5FtucDhM0
— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) March 6, 2024
Prime Minister Narendra Modi boarded India’s first underwater metro rail in Kolkata. During this he interacted with the students.
#WATCH पश्चिम बंगाल: प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी कोलकाता में भारत की पहली अंडरवॉटर मेट्रो रेल में सवार हुए। इस दौरान उन्होंने छात्रों के साथ संवाद किया। pic.twitter.com/DjeDbNDcrv
— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) March 6, 2024
Kolkata Metro started in 1984
The first metro operation in India was started in Kolkata in the year 1984. After 18 years, metro operation was started in Delhi in the year 2002. Alok Kumar, Associate Professor of IIM-Calcutta, did a lot of research on Railways. After this the idea was again put forward in the 1980s by the then Railway Minister ABA Ghani Khan Chaudhary. After getting approval by the UPA government in 2008, construction work started in 2009. But the project was delayed due to political constraints and cost overruns.
Underwater metro is part of the East-West Corridor project
India’s first underwater metro service is part of Kolkata’s East-West Corridor Project. The East-West Metro project will connect Sector V to Howrah Maidan on the other side of the Hooghly River. It is being built for Rs 8,600 crore. There is a distance of 4.8 kilometers between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade.
Expected to cover 520 meters distance in 45 seconds
According to a statement issued by Metro Railways, the 4.8 km long stretch of East-West Metro from Howrah Maidan to Esplanade has been built at a cost of Rs 4,965 crore. Of the total 16.6 km of the East-West Metro Corridor, 10.8 km is underground, which also includes the tunnel under the river. The metro train is expected to cover the distance of 520 meters under the river in just 45 seconds.
This tunnel is on the Green Line Metro
The underwater metro route is located on the Green Line of Kolkata Metro which is a 16.6 km long corridor. It connects IT hub Salt Lake Sector 5 in East Kolkata and Howrah Maidan in the West. This route passes through Sealdah and Esplanade. The first phase of this corridor is between Sector 5 and Sealdah. Presently it is operational.