Decks have been cleared to construct a Metro depot at Joka in Kolkata, West Bengal. The project is an important part to running Joka-BBD Bag line’s truncated services to Taratala by the end of 2021.
The Railway Board has given the go-ahead for the Rs 373 crore project, though the entire 24.5 ha of land for the depot is yet to be acquired.
RVNL, executing agency of the Metro corridor, which has got possession of over 85 percent of the land, has been preparing the site for the depot construction by developing the ground and building walls.
Work on acquiring the rest of the depot land will run parallel with the construction activity, including multiple sheds and structures, such as lifting bays, workshops and coach washing plants, setting up electrical connections, installation of tracks and commissioning of machinery and plant for the Metro car depot.
Once the depot’s infrastructure is ready, the machinery for maintenance of the rolling stock or rakes can be installed. However, the rolling stock could not be brought in till the facility was ready.
Earlier, the Joka-BBD Bag Metro was supposed to run services from Joka to Majerhat in Phase-I.
But with construction of Majerhat station being postpone following the Majerhat bridge collapse, Metro Railway decided to run the first phase from Joka to Taratala by the end of 2021 and extend services, depending on work.
The Railway Board recently accorded nod to build a viaduct till Mominpore from where the tracks will go underground. An amount of Rs 450.2 crore had been budgeted for in the pink book of 2020-21.
Moreover, the Metro projects in Kolkata are funded by the Centre, unlike in other cities, where the cost is shared by the state and the Centre.