The bridging of the missing link in the upcoming New Garia-Airport Metro corridor at Chingrighata is scheduled to be completed over three nights between May 17 and 19, senior officers of Kolkata Police said.
Sources at Lalbazar said the police have informally apprised senior officials of Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), the agency executing the project, about the proposed dates. A final communiqué will follow.
“We have decided to bridge the gap between May 17 and 19, unless something very challenging emerges in the interim,” a senior officer said.
“The work will be carried out between midnight and 5am,” the officer added.
Timeline
The police will remain stretched until May 4, the day election results are due. The city will remain under heightened alert for the week following the declaration of results.
“The summer break for schools is likely to begin around May 15. EM Bypass will have a lower vehicular load during this time. We want to start on May 17, a Sunday, and wrap it up by Tuesday,” the officer said.
Court rap
In March, the Supreme Court castigated the Bengal government’s “obstinate” stalling of Metro work at Chingrighata as a “dereliction of constitutional duties” and an attempt to politicise a project that would benefit people.
The court rejected the state’s plea that clearing the project now would violate the model code of conduct.
The state also argued in vain that the police clearance could result in traffic disruptions.
“This is a complete dereliction of constitutional duties. You are running away from your responsibilities,” the bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi told the Bengal government’s counsel.
The RVNL has been seeking a no-objection certificate (NOC) for night traffic blocks at Chingrighata since September 2024.
Hearing a PIL on the project’s delay, the high court had on December 23 set a February 15, 2026, deadline to lift the concrete blocks, directing the police to issue the clearance in time to make this possible.
The plan
Sources said the first phase of the work would be on the piers on the western flank of EM Bypass. This flank carries vehicles towards Beleghata and Ultadanga, and the work is likely to be completed by May 18.
“In the second phase, the pillars across the eastern flank will be connected, and the work will be completed by May 19. We have held multiple traffic trials to understand how the traffic is likely to play out at night when the work of lifting the concrete blocks is carried out,” another senior officer overseeing traffic management said
Senior RVNL officials said they were awaiting a formal intimation before chalking out a plan to mobilise men and machinery at the site.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed,” a senior official said.