Kolkata: India’s first underwater metro rail tunnel; Here’s all you need to know about the project

India will soon experience something like never before as the nation will soon have its first-ever underwater metro train in Kolkata by 2023. The Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC) is set to complete the country's first underwater tunnel for metro connectivity under the Hooghly river between Howrah and Kolkata. The East and West metro corridors will be connected via this twin tunnel over 500 meters. 

All you need to know about India’s first Underwater metro tunnel: 

About the project

Of the 16.6-km-long east-west corridor stretch, 520 meters will be under the river bed of the Hooghly river. The tunnel corridor is built 33 meters below the riverbed and will connect Kolkata to Howrah. The tunnel will have 1.4m-wide concrete rings and hydrophilic gaskets to prevent water from entering the tunnel. This metro connectivity will help reduce travel time between Sector V to Howrah. The train will be running at a depth equal to a 10-story structure underwater. 

This will be a one-of-a-kind underwater metro train tunnel in India and is expected to be at par with Eurostar which connects London to Paris. The project is expected to decongest traffic and transform lives of the people residing near Hooghly river. 

Also read: Snake spotted on Thiruvananthapuram-Nizamuddin Express; train halted for over two hours

Safety facilities

Speaking of the facilities and safety measures being provided in the project, Mithun Ghosh, the Site Supervisor said that there will be walkways in the tunnels for evacuation of passengers in case of emergency. Passage work has been done keeping in view the technical problems that might arise inside the water tunnel area. Hence a special passage has been made so passengers can evacuate during such a situation. 

Cost of the tunnel 

The cost of the project is estimated to be Rs 8,600 crore. 

Deadline for the project 

The project is expected to be completed by 2023.