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The final 2.6 km stretch between Esplanade and Sealdah is the missing link to complete the entire 16.6 km East-West Metro corridor, connecting Sector V to Howrah Maidan.
Kolkata Metro. (File photo)
Metro Railway has started inspecting the upcoming Esplanade-Sealdah section of the East-West Metro in Kolkata.
This survey is essential to prepare a status report, which must be submitted before the Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) conducts its final inspection, as per TOI.
What is the CRS?
The CRS, an independent authority under India’s Civil Aviation Ministry, is responsible for granting safety clearance for new metro lines before they can begin passenger services. Metro Railway, which operates Kolkata’s metro system, began its assessment of the last 2.6 km section recently.
The Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC), which is implementing the Rs 10,000 crore East-West Metro corridor, is overseeing the process. Once complete, the corridor will run 16.6 km from Sector V to Howrah Maidan.
Currently, the East-West Metro operates in two disconnected sections:
- 9.2 km: Sealdah to Sector V
- 4.8 km: Esplanade to Howrah Maidan
The 2.6 km missing link between Sealdah and Esplanade is yet to be completed, preventing the full route from functioning as one continuous stretch.
According to reports from TOI, Metro Railway is aiming to launch the completed stretch around Poila Baishakh (April 15). Before this, the CRS must inspect and approve the section for operations.
Engineers will now inspect both Sector V-bound and Howrah-bound tracks, checking electrification and other key systems. A detailed report must also be submitted to CRS regarding software upgrades for the automatic signalling system across the 12 East-West Metro stations.
Once CRS is satisfied with these reports, it will carry out its own trial runs before granting final approval for operations.