Kolkata: Elevated section of Joka Metro to run till Mominpore

KOLKATA: The construction of elevated Joka-Esplanade Metro corridor will extend beyond Majerhat. This is a surprise to many, particularly, the residents of Behala, who lost hope and thought that the elevated corridor would eventually turn out to be a hanging urban forest.
But some successive developments, particularly a tender worth Rs 191 crore during the lockdown, revived hope for the project.Now, the elevated corridor will be constructed till the site near Command Hospital campus, where Mominpore station will be built. The construction of viaduct on 38 piers will resume shortly after awarding the contract.
Joka-Esplanade Metro, which was conceived by Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee in 2010 when she was the railway minister, was jinxed because of land issues. When the construction of the corridor gained momentum, Majerhat Road over Bridge (ROB) collapsed, halting the construction of Majerhat station, just beside the collapsed bridge.
Now, Majerhat ROB construction is in the final lap. Once the bridge is thrown open to traffic in August-end or early-September, the construction of the station will resume. “But without waiting for time, the Railway Board has given a goahead for the construction of rest of the elevated stretch of the Metro up to Mominpore,” said an RVNL officer. From Mominpore, the corridor will gradually go underground. Already, tender has been floated for the general consultant of the underground project for the finalization of project design.
Significantly, even Mominpore station became uncertain when army refused to part with the land parcel required for the construction. However, a breakthrough could be achieved after the state government and the ministries of railways and defence sat together to resolve the issues.
This is quite a significant move on the part of the Railway Board to make crucial funding for Metro projects in the city because during his last visit even the railway minister Piyush Goyal had asked the Metro railway to scrap the work. However, Metro Rail authorities were successful in convincing the railway board to finish the work.
The scope of the job, according to the tender document, includes construction of viaduct over 38 piers, Mominpore and Majerhat station (excluding the Property Development building and Operations Control Centre building) and ramp at Joka depot. Besides, tender worth Rs 29 crore has been floated for construction of leftover work of Behala Bazar and Taratala stations and OCC building adjacent to Majerhat station. With the completion of these works, elevated section of Joka-Esplanade Metro will be over.