Centre blames Bengal govt for delays in Kolkata Metro projects

Kolkata: The Centre has blamed the Bengal government for holding up Kolkata Metro expansion works for more than two decades, with Union Railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw telling Parliament that repeated non-cooperation from the state has stalled key corridors across the city.

In a written reply to Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee, Vaishnaw reportedly said that several crucial clearances and land-related permissions have remained pending with the state for years, slowing progress on multiple metro routes intended to connect Kolkata with its

fast-growing suburbs. On the 14-km Joka–Esplanade line, the minister said around 6.26 km between Majerhat and Esplanade remains incomplete,

primarily due to the unresolved shifting of 528 unauthorised shops at the Dr B.C. Roy Market near Esplanade.

Railways had submitted a proposal for temporary and permanent relocation in February 2022 and even built temporary structures, but the no-objection certificate from the state PWD has been pending for over 3.5 years, he wrote.

A second hurdle, Vaishnaw noted, was the near five-year delay in receiving land belonging to the Kolkata Armed Police for the Khidderpur station. The proposal was sent in August 2020 and cleared only in July 2025. The minister also flagged prolonged delays on the New Garia–Dum Dum Airport corridor, where work on 22.2 km from Beleghata to the airport remains stalled despite the railways constructing a diversion road in February 2025 to meet Kolkata Police’s requirements. The NOC, he said,

is still awaited.

The Noapara–Barasat and Baranagar–Barrackpore–Dakshineshwar stretches have seen similar setbacks. Land acquisition for the New Barrackpore–Barasat segment — involving 23,000 sq m, 1,277 hutments and 764 shops — remains unresolved, while 12.5 km on the Barrackpore route has been blocked for 13 years, reportedly due to a pending NOC related to a BT Road pipeline.

The Centre’s comments come months after chief minister Mamata Banerjee had said she had sanctioned and planned the metro expansions during her tenure as Railway minister and continued to support them as Chief Minister. The latest statement from the Union Ministry, however, shifts responsibility squarely onto the state for the prolonged delays.