India’s first undersea metro milestone: Over 12 lakh commuters traveled in Kolkata metro’s Howrah-Esplanade corridor in one month

Commercial services on the Howrah-Esplanade stretch started on March 15 (Image/@metrorailwaykol)

India’s first under-river Kolkata metro’s Howrah Maidan-Esplanade corridor recorded 12.14 lakh passengers traveling along the stretch in 30 days, some of which run below the Hooghly river.

Since the launch of the metro rail service from March 15 to April 14, it earned Rs 1.75 crore on the Green Line, as per the statement by Metro Railway Kolkata.

In March 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the metro train service between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade in Kolkata, marking the opening of India’s first under-river tunnel.

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Notably, the 4.8-km tunnel between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade includes a 1.2 km section, which is 30 meters below the Hooghly River, establishing it as the country’s first transportation tunnel beneath a significant river.

Meanwhile, commuters also found switching corridors convenient at Esplanade and Kavi Subhash Metro stations (New Garia in south Kolkata) with integrated tickets.

Commercial services on the Howrah-Esplanade stretch on the Green Line, and Kavi Subhash to Hemanta Mukhopadhyay (Ruby crossing) stretch on the Orange Line have started on March 15.

Inaugural reception received rave response 

The Howrah- Esplanade inaugural witnessed a remarkable debut, ferrying over 70,000 passengers on its first day of service. Kolkata’s underwater metro services also saw a significant surge in commuters in the first 14 days, recording more than 750,000 passengers.

Between March 15 and March 31, over 17 days, Howrah station recorded the highest passenger count of 315,000, followed by Howrah Maidan station, which registered 255,000 passengers, Kausik Mitra, the Chief Public Relations Officer of Kolkata Metro earlier mentioned in the statement.