Kolkata: India's Oldest Metro Records Highest Ever Network Increase In Single Year, To Launch New Stretch Soon

Recently, Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) has approved the launch of services on the 5.4-km-long Orange line segment between Kavi Subhash (New Garia) and Hemanta Mukherjee stations (Ruby crossing) in east Kolkata. 

The New Garia-DumDum stretch has five stops and services are expected to begin soon.

This is the first phase of Kolkata Metro's almost 30-km-long Orange line, which will connect New Garia with NSC Bose International Airport via eastern Kolkata, Salt Lake, and New Town.

The 6.5-km section of the Joka to Taratala Section (Blue Line) was officially opened by Minister of Railway Ashwini Vaishnav on 30 December 2022. 

The East-West Metro Railway's Sealdah to Phoolbagan link was also put into service in July 2022.

Since the beginning of the metro construction in 1972, this is the highest-ever metro network increase in a single year. This is a 36 per cent increase in network growth in just one year.

Suvomoy Mitra, the CRS (North Frontier Circle), who conducted the mandatory inspection of the line on 30 January, has given its nod for opening this stretch, reports DNA.

Another 9.82 km stretch, from the Ruby crossing to Salt Lake's Sector V station, is scheduled to be finished by October of this year, according to metro officials. 

Kolkata, one of the country's largest cities with the least amount of road space, relies heavily on the metro railway system to transfer people quickly.

The oldest metro system in the nation, the North-South line of the Kolkata Metro, sees four lakh people each day approximately.

The Kolkata Metro received an outlay of 2,550 crore during the Union Budget for 2023–24 for two of its projects: Joka to Binoy Badal Dinesh (BBD) Bag and Dum Dum airport to New Garia. Both projects are being carried out by the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL).