Kolkata Metro creates history with successful underwater test run

Kolkata witnessed history on Wednesday as a rake of the Kolkata Metro conducted a successful trial run through an underwater tunnel under the Hooghly river on the route connecting Esplanade in central Kolkata with the iconic Howrah station.

Only senior officials and select engineers of Kolkata Metro were on board during the trial run, the first in the history of the nation.

Describing the event as a historic moment for the city, Kolkata Metro general manager P. Uday Kumar Reddy said that this is just the beginning, and that regular underwater trial runs on this route will commence soon.

Reddy, who described the trip as "revolutionary", was part of the metro's first trial run as he travelled from the Mahakaran station to the Howrah Maidan station.

According to Reddy, regular trial runs on this route would be conducted for the next seven months. "Soon after that, regular services for the general public will commence," he said.

The route stretching from Howrah to Esplanade is approximately 4.8 km long, of which 520 metres will be through the tunnel under the Hooghly river. The tunnel sits 32 metres under water level.