Kolkata, Nov 17: Amid the euphoria over the fast expanding Delhi Metro, the country’s first underground metro railway service here has completed 25 years, virtually unnoticed and unsung.
Punctual to the minute and fast, the Kolkata Metro Railway has been winning plaudits from commuters for its smooth rides and cleanliness in a city otherwise known for its traffic snarls, potholed streets and squalor. The Metro, which started its journey on October 24, 1984, carries half a million passengers daily and safely from the city’s southern outskirts Garia Bazar to the northern tip Dum Dum. “It has never reported any derailment, fatality or structural collapse,” M Seshagiri Rao, retired managing director and chairman of Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES), told. Constructed entirely by Indian Railway engineers, without help from a single foreign consultant or foreign contractor, the major stretch of the Metro lies below sea level.
It is also an eco-friendly transport system that does not emit any harmful gas, as it runs on electricity. Closed circuit cameras installed at all stations are monitored from the control room in the nodal office to ensure security. Beginning with five stations spread over 3.4 km, the Metro now connects 21 stations, traversing 22.28 km. There is a plan to add another station this year (2009-10), taking the total distance covered to 23.56 km. “The main mantra for its success is its cheap, affordable fare (Rs 4 to Rs 12 per ride). Every day, about 500,000 passengers patronise it. The kind of service we provide is reflected in the ever-rising number of commuters," Kolkata Metro Railway general manager V N Tripathi told.
He gave credit for the stations’ cleanliness to the passengers. “Credit should go to the users as well as railway staff who are maintaining rakes and stations. No edibles are taken. The sense of belonging of city dwellers helps to keep it clean.” Former Olympian footballer P K Banerjee, who was showcased in the classic national integration video Mile Sur Mera Tumhara as alighting from the Metro, told: “I am amazed at the cleanliness of the Metro stations. I have very high regard for the Kolkata Metro.” The turnover of the Metro Railway last year (2008-09) was Rs 750 million and this year (2009-10) it is expected to be around Rs 850 million with the addition of five more stations, Tripathi said. On any working day 213 trains ply from 7 a m to 9.45 p m and on Sundays 65 trains run from 2 p m to 9.45 pm. However, all the 18 existing rakes, none of them air-conditioned are at least 15 years old. There are also plans to add smoke extractors in all the 15 underground stations and install a new ticketing system. (IANS)
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