[sustran] Fw: THE "NATIVE" CALCUTTA METRO

[Vinay Baindur]

 ----- Forwarded Message -----
*From:* Mohan Rao mohanraobk at hotmail.com


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        *Letter to** THE HINDU from** Shri M.** **SESHAGIRI RAO,
retired CMD RITES *
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THE "NATIVE" CALCUTTA METRO

The 20km long Calcutta Metro Railway completes  25 years next month,
unwept, unhonoured and unsung. It has never had a derailment, no fatality
or no structural collapses.

It carries 4.2 lakh passengers a day that is three times of the Delhi Metro
which is more than thrice as long. It is faster too.

Almost the entire length of Calcutta Metro lies below sea level and the
construction was done entirely by Indian Railway Engineers without a single
Foreign Consultant or Foreign Contractor. There are no unsightly massive
Viaducts casting ugly shadows over the Historical Boulevards. Visitors
traveling by car are not even aware that there are trains running below
them under Chowringhee, Chittaranjan Avenue or Shambazar. The tunnels and
underground stations are air-conditioned and the trains carry the cool air
with them.

The moving trains are not burdened with air-conditioning equipment which
adds 20% to the weight and 50% to the cost. These Spartan coaches were not
airlifted from Germany amidst pomposity and fanfare. They were all built by
the ICF/Perambur and hauled to Calcutta over Rails. They cost, at present
day prices, a fourth of what Delhi Metro coaches cost. The tickets cost
about the same as Buses and not thrice as much.

Let the rest of the Country think what they like, the Calcuttans are proud
of their "Paatal Railway" which they use very intensively. For the
much-maligned City, there is neither graffiti nor a speck of trash on the
Calcutta Metro.*
-- **