Kolkata, June 21 -- Eastern Railway has completed most of its pre-monsoon preparedness measures across its four divisions and has sought no-objection certificates (NOCs) from the Nadia district administration for closure of nine level crossings proposed to be replaced by railway overbridges (ROBs).
Officials said extensive cleaning of drains and water channels has been carried out to prevent waterlogging. In the Howrah Division alone, more than 104 km of trackside and cross-track drains and nearly 16.5 km of colony drains have been cleaned, while similar works have been undertaken in Sealdah.
The Howrah Division has identified 47 embankment sites requiring special attention, while round-the-clock patrols have been activated in vulnerable sections of the Sealdah Division. Personnel have also been deployed at waterlogging-prone subways and road underbridges, including 54 locations in the Howrah Division. Safety inspections covered 195 stations and 1,493 platform shed units in the Howrah Division. Of the 485 deficiencies detected, 338 have been rectified and the remaining works are expected to be completed by June 30. Tree trimming has also been undertaken to minimise disruption to overhead electrical equipment during storms.
In the Malda Division, monsoon patrolling teams have been deployed at vulnerable bridges and track sections since June 1, while emergency materials have been stocked for weather-related contingencies. The Asansol Division has carried out sanitation drives across stations and railway colonies.
Eastern Railway said emergency dewatering pumps have been positioned at low-lying locations, subways and passenger movement areas. Meanwhile, the railway's Gati Shakti Unit has sought NOCs from the Nadia district administration for the closure of nine level crossings proposed to be replaced by ROBs.
The crossings are located between Kalyani and Kalyani Simanta, Dhubulia and Muragachha, Debagram and Plassey, Ranaghat and Aranghata, Chakdah and Payradanga, Birnagar and Badkulla, Kanchrapara and Kalyani, Kalyani and Madanpur, and Phulia and Shantipur.
Railway officials said detailed project reports and related documents have already been submitted and the required clearances are awaited. Ranaghat MP Jagannath Sarkar said several of the locations figure in a proposal he submitted to the Sealdah divisional railway manager in February 2021, seeking overbridges or underpasses at busy railway crossings in and around the Constituency.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.