East-West Corridor: Metro to halt work in Bowbazar for Monsoon

kolkata: Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC) has decided to suspend construction of the underground tunnel of East West Metro in Bowbazar in view of Monsoon.

During monsoon construction on weak soil could not be carried out and hence such a decision has been taken said Naresh Karmali, managing director of KMRC.

On Friday, the experts of Jadavpur University have submitted their preliminary report to Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC). It was learnt that the expert committee had suggested that the condition of the soil where the construction of tunnel was going on is very weak and hence a detailed discussion should be carried out on the issue before the constrction is resumed.

The KMC has handed over the map of the area on the condition of the soil as well the construction above to Jadavpur University.

Recently, Mayor Firhad Hakim had held a meeting with the senior officials of KMRC. Along with the experts of JU, municipal commissioner Vinod Kumar, senior officials of the Building department, Trinamool Congress MLAs Nayana Bandyopadhyay and Tapas Roy were present in the meeting.

It was decided in the meeting that soil tests will be done regularly. Building design drawing, settlement report, and building assessment report will be submitted to the expert committee.

The KMC will examine the health of the buildings. KMC is likely to pull down the building at Durga Pituri Lane.

The house has been declared dilapidated and dangerous by the KMC and it tilted towards an adjacent house. Senior KMC officials said most of the buildings in the area are more than century old and the foundation of most of the houses have become weak over the years.

They said it before the metro authorities resume work all the pros and cons should be carefully examined. Mayor Firhad Hakim on Friday held a meeting with Kolkata Metro Railway Corporation Ltd (KMRCL) which is executing the project in presence of MLA Nayna Bandyopadhay and Tapas Roy where KMRCL opined that 23 buildings that had suffered damages earlier and 9 odd buildings that have been damaged recently needs to be rebuild.

"We are awaiting expert committee report and will place it at the Chief Secretary level before taking a final call about the number of buildings that can be repaired and those that are beyond repair,"

Hakim said.