Puja: Metro introduces Hand-Held Terminals
Kolkata: No need to stand in long queues at ticket counters during Puja days at stations, as the Metro Railway has introduced a new amenity, Hand-Held Terminals.
These terminals will allow commuters to purchase QR Code-based tickets without waiting in line from non-ticketing areas such as staircases, in front of luggage scanners, entry-exit gates (AFC-PC gates), station entry gates, corridors, and many other locations within different Metro stations.
As every year, it is expected that pandal hoppers will extensively use the Metro Railway network to reach their favourite pandals during the Puja days. To manage the surge of passengers, Metro Railway is introducing these mobile booking counters for the first time as an alternative ticketing solution.
According to a statement issued by the Metro Railway, staff will move around in the non-ticketing areas with Hand-Held machines outside the booking counters at stations. From there, commuters can purchase their tickets without wasting any time by paying the fare in cash. These terminals can also check the validity of QR Code-based tickets and other details.
These new Hand-Held Terminals will be available at Dakshineswar, Dumdum, Belgachhia, Shovabazar-Sutanuti, Esplanade, Rabindra Sadan, Jatin Das Park, and Kalighat stations of the Dakshineswar-Kavi Subhash corridor (Blue Line), as well as at Howrah Maidan and Howrah stations of the Green Line (Howrah Maidan-Esplanade). A total of 23 Hand-Held Terminals will be used on a trial basis at these stations.
Meanwhile, to accommodate the pre-Puja rush, Kolkata Metro Railway has increased services on the Howrah Maidan-Esplanade stretch of the Green Line from October 5 (Saturday) to October 9 (Wednesday). The Metro Railway will operate 130 services on Saturday and from
Monday to Wednesday, up from the usual 118 services. Trains will run at intervals of 12 to 15 minutes instead of the usual 20 minutes. On October 6 (Sunday), 82 services will be available instead of the usual 46, with services running at 12-minute intervals instead of 20 minutes.
