Kolkata Metro chugs out after 176 days, ferries about 20K passengers

Kolkata: Metro services in the city started on Monday after a gap of 176 days. Services were available from Noapara to Kavi Subhas and in the East-West metro route from Salt Lake Sector V to Salt Lake Stadium.

However, journey in the new normal was different with only passengers with smart cards being allowed to travel. Services started from 8 am and the last train left the terminating stations at 7 pm.

"I had to undergo thermal scanning during entry at the station and had to furnish my e pass generated for my time slot. I travelled from Dum Dum to Jatin Das Park and the rake had only seating passengers and that too with a gap between two seats to maintain physical distancing. The office crowd and the jostling for space was not there. It was a good jouney," said Sutapa Biswas, who works in an MNC at Hazra.

Another passenger expressed satisfaction over the safety measures undertaken by the metro authorities. "There are sanitising arrangements at a number of places in the stations. The counters are open for recharge of smart cards. Masks are compulsory for travelling," he added.

A passenger who travelled from Mahanayak Uttam Kumar (Tollygunge) and detrained at Dum Dum expressed his hope that the new normal of travelling will continue in metro. "Bus services had started with physical distancing. But within a short time it went for a toss and the crowding was back. We hope to see a contrast picture in metro travel where a plan has been put in place," he maintained.

The arrangements were for ferrying over 100,000 passengers daily under the new normal but as per Metro sources around 20,000 passengers travelled on the first day and the total earning was over Rs 11 lakh. "The passenger count will gradually pick up," said a senior Metro official.

No e-passes was required for travelling in East-West metro and only smart cards were enough as normally passengers are much less in this metro.