KOLKATA: Commuters will be able to stay connected on their cellphones, through voice or high-speed data, while zipping through the East-West Metro’s under-river tunnels. The facility is being added to the ready-for-launch 4.8km Esplanade-Howrah Maidan stretch. Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC), implementing agency of the 16km East-West Metro, is currently complying with the 50 issues pointed out by chief commissioner of railway safety (CCRS) Janak Kumar Garg during his inspection of the truncated section last month. Sources said the CCRS had also mentioned mobile connectivity. Airtel has started working to ensure seamless telecom connectivity for commuters in the tunnels. Officials said KMRC will be roping in other service providers so that other subscribers can also stay connected while travelling in the new Metro section.East-West Metro is partially operational across 9.2km, between Sector V and Sealdah. Work is pending along the 2.5km Sealdah-Esplanade section that passes through the subsidence-ridden Bowbazar area.
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KMRC is skipping this segment for now, and is focussed on the 4.8km Esplanade-Howrah Maidan stretch instead of a continuous run beyond Sealdah.
“Necessary facilities are being put in place so that commuters’ mobile signals don’t disappear as soon as they enter the stations or tunnels in the new section,” an official said.
This stretch of East-West Metro features India’s deepest Metro station, embedded inside the Howrah railway station at a depth of 33m. The 520m-long river tunnels are 13m below the Hooghly. Such underground infrastructure poses considerable obstacles to mobile network and internet propagation, officials said.
Initially, there was no network when the underground Phoolbagan-Sealdah section was launched in July 2022. Then there were patchy services in the tunnels. But now, things have improved.
However, sources said there may be teething problems in the new section initially, until a comprehensive telecom infrastructure, including antennas and repeaters, is installed.
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