KOLKATA: The metro railway on Thursday had to shut down escalators at Rabindra Sadan and Esplanade Metro Stations for the safety of the commuters.
The escalator was shut down with a gap of 10 to 15 minutes for a couple of hours. Another reason cited for the shutdown by a senior Metro official was heavy downpour at the time leading to the entrance and exit getting crowded.
Esplanade Metro Station was especially crowded on Thursday for its proximity to Dharmatala, where the Martyrs' Day rally by Trinamool Congress was held. Many of the supporters and workers of the party had availed Metro to reach the venue.
In anticipation of a situation like this, the Metro authorities had taken a few steps ahead of the rally day. They opened additional ticket counters. To avoid any untoward incident, the security was beefed up as well. In addition to the present staff strength, 107 more Metro railway personnel were deployed at five stations—Noapara, Belgachia, Central, Kalighat and Mahanayak Uttam Kumar.