Kolkata, May 15 -- Work to bridge the long-pending gap at Chingrighata on Kolkata Metro's Orange Line began on Friday evening, with traffic restrictions coming into force on stretches of the EM Bypass for phased girder-launching operations that Metro Railway officials said could pave the way for direct Metro connectivity between the southern fringes and Salt Lake Sector V by December 2026.

The construction is part of the New Garia-Airport corridor and involves launching segments between piers 317 and 318 near the Chingrighata intersection to bridge the incomplete 366-metre viaduct gap between Beleghata and Gour Kishore Ghosh stations.

According to the traffic diversion plan, the first phase of restrictions, which began at 8 pm on Friday, will continue till 8 am on May 18. During this phase, the western flank of the EM Bypass below the Chingrighata flyover will remain closed for northbound traffic. In the second phase, from 8 pm on May 22 till 8 am on May 25, the eastern flank will remain closed for southbound traffic. Police said necessary diversions had been planned during the restriction period.

Citing the "double-engine government" that recently came to power in West Bengal, Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in a social media post: "The problem of Chingrighata, stuck for three years, has been resolved. Permission has also been obtained from the Kolkata Police. Now the work is starting."

Kolkata Metro Railway chief public relations officer S. S. Kannan said Metro Railway was optimistic that services between Beleghata and IT Centre (Salt Lake Sector V) could begin by December 2026 if work progressed according to schedule. He added that the state government was extending the required permissions for the project.

The Orange Line is currently operational between Kavi Subhash and Beleghata. The next three stations - Gour Kishore Ghosh, Nalban and IT Centre - have already been built but remain unopened because of the incomplete Chingrighata stretch.

Once the Orange Line extension up to IT Sector is commissioned, commuters will be able to interchange with the Green Line at Salt Lake Sector V station and travel from the southern fringes towards Sealdah, Esplanade and

Howrah by Metro.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.