Vinod Bhat
New Delhi: Kolkata Metro achieved a significant milestone with the successful breakthrough of Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) ‘Durga’ at Purple Line of Kolkata Metro, marking the completion of one of the underground tunnel drives between Khidderpore and Victoria on the Joka-Esplanade Metro Corridor. The breakthrough, achieved today, is a key step towards strengthening Kolkata’s urban mass transit network and advancing one of the city’s most important Metro expansion projects.
Key Highlights:
- TBM ‘Durga’ successfully achieved a breakthrough at Victoria Metro Station.
- Marks the completion of the Khidderpore-Victoria underground tunnel, with tunnelling having commenced on 10 July 2025.
- The achievement reflects engineering excellence, precision planning, and seamless coordination among all stakeholders.
- The tunnelling work was executed while maintaining high standards of safety and quality, with minimal disruption to surface traffic.
- The Joka-Esplanade Metro Corridor will significantly improve east-west connectivity across Kolkata by linking the southern parts of the city with its central business district.
- The corridor is expected to provide faster, safer and more sustainable public transport, reducing travel time and easing road congestion.
The successful breakthrough of TBM ‘Durga’ builds on a series of important milestones achieved by Kolkata Metro within 50 days.
Earlier, Kolkata Metro successfully bridged the critical 62-metre viaduct gap at Chingrighata on the Kavi Subhash-Airport (Orange Line) corridor, removing a major construction bottleneck and paving the way for faster progress towards completing the line.
