Kolkata Monorail

Rail-based transit project planned for Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Kolkata Monorail

Overview
Locale| Kolkata Metropolitan Area
Transit type| Straddle-beam Monorail

Kolkata Monorail was a rail-based transit project planned for the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, India. This was the first proposed monorail in the country.[1][2][3][4]

## History

[edit]

### 2004 & 2008

[edit]

The initial plan regarding the monorail was floated in 2004.[5][6] In November that 2008, the first corridor (Budge Budge to Taratala) was finalised and the project was awarded to Andromeda Technologies, at a total cost of Rs. 1,200 crore, along with a German company, Derap AG & Helbling Technik AG and Fernmeldewerk Munchen Aubing, as technology and signalling partners, respectively.[7] It was a build-own-operate public-private partnership model between Government of West Bengal and Andromeda Technologies Pvt. Ltd. The coaches were supposed to be initially imported from Germany, and later locally produced at Titagarh Wagons, Jessop and Texmaco.[1] It was targeted that the phase 1 corridor would be operational by the next 4–5 years. The 2nd phase was a 52 km long route from Taratala to Rajarhat.[7] But, the project was put on hold, due to lack of support from financial institution and unfavourable conditions, and Andromeda Technologies pulled out from it. The sanction of Orange Line in 2010-11 Railway Budget, led to the end of the monorail corridor, since both had almost the same alignment.[8][3]

### 2014

[edit]

Scomi Engineering, expressed its intention to develop monorail system in the city, especially in New Town, with a budget of Rs. 2000-2500 crore.[9]

### 2016

[edit]

In 2016, the plan was revived. A 70 km corridor from Budge Budge to Ruby on EM Bypass, via Budge Budge Trunk Road, New Alipore and Prince Anwar Shah Road, was proposed, to connect parts South 24 Parganas with the Orange Line.[10] The state industry promotion and development board approved the proposal submitted by Burn Standard. Thus, Burn Standard was the implementation agency of the project in PPP model with Government of West Bengal, at a cost of Rs. 4,216 crore. The Physical construction was planned to begin by March 2017 with a 3-year deadline.[6][4][11] The project again came to a halt after few years.

### 2018

[edit]

West Bengal Housing & Infrastructure Development Corporation in October 2018 proposed monorail for New Town, the fast-growing planned satellite city of Kolkata and Salt Lake, another planned city adjacent to New Town. The feasibility study was conducted and cost evaluation of the project was done. The line would start at Ultandanga, and pass via Salt Lake Sector I & III and would end at New Town, thus connecting Green Line and Orange Line. The total cost of project was estimated at Rs. 4500 crore.[12][13][14]

## Current status

[edit]

Again in 2020, Braithwaite & Co., started talks with Government of West Bengal to set up monorail in the state. It is planned to run between Sealdah and Titagarh. The corridor is still in planning stage.[15] In February 2020, New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) shelved the monorail proposal in and around New Town, and preferred to opt for a cheaper ropeway system.[16]

## Corridors

[edit]

Year  | 2006  | 2014  | 2016  | 2018  | 2020

|
|
|
|
|

Phase  | 1  | 2
Corridor  | Budge Budge – Taratala | Taratala – Rajarhat | NewTown | Budge Budge – Ruby | Ultadanga – New Town | Sealdah – Titagarh
Length  | 20 kilometres (12 mi)  | 52 kilometres (32 mi)  | 00 kilometres (0 mi)  | 70 kilometres (43 mi)  | 13 kilometres (8.1 mi)^ | 20 kilometres (12 mi)^
Status  | Proposed | Scrapped | Scrapped | Proposed | Scrapped | Proposed

^ : Approximate Length

## See also

[edit]

* Kolkata Metro
* Kolkata Suburban Railway
* Kolkata Light Rail Transit
* Trams in Kolkata

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Indias first monorail to come up in Kolkata". The Financial Express. 22 November 2008. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
2. ^ "Kolkata monorail project likely to begin from March". The Indian Express. 22 November 2008. Archived from the original on 22 January 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
3. ^ a b "Kolkata Monorail mass transit system to be operational by mid-2011". India Automotive. 22 November 2008. Archived from the original on 28 January 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
4. ^ a b "Bengal turns to Burn Standard for Kolkata monorail project". Business Standard. 29 September 2016. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
5. ^ "Kolkata on a high: state seals Monorail MoU". The Indian Express. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
6. ^ a b 29 September 2016. "Light at end of tunnel for Kolkata's monorail project". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 5 May 2020.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
7. ^ a b "Construction of first stretch of monorail to start in March". oneindia.com. 21 November 2008. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
8. ^ "Rail set to take over East-West - jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj". The Telegraph. Kolkota. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
9. ^ "Monorail giant eyes Newtown project". 21 August 2014. Archived from the original on 12 August 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
10. ^ "Kolkata to get its own monorail". Hindustan Times. 29 September 2016. Archived from the original on 27 July 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
11. ^ Kundu, Indrajit (29 September 2016). "Kolkata to get its own monorail service, CM Mamata says will soon sign MoU". India Today. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
12. ^ "HIDCO explores options for starting monorail services in Salt lake, New Town". millenniumpost.in. 4 October 2018. Archived from the original on 18 December 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
13. ^ "HIDCO, exploring options for monorail services". United News of India. 27 October 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
14. ^ "India Smart City Mission" (PDF). smartcities.gov.in/. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 July 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
15. ^ "Monorail services to be introduced in Bengal soon". millenniumpost.in. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
16. ^ "Soon, ropeway services to connect areas in New Town". millenniumpost.in. 7 February 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.

* v
* t
* e

Kolkata topics

History|

* Bengali Renaissance
* Black Hole of Calcutta
* Bhurshut
* Calcutta flag
* Dihi Panchannagram
* Direct Action Day
* Dutch Bengal
* Gobindapur
* History of Kolkata
* Presidency division
* Job Charnock
* Kalighat–Falta Railway
* Kalikata
* Robert Clive
* Sabarna Roy Choudhury
* Siege of Calcutta
* Sutanuti
* State Archaeological Museum
* Warren Hastings
* Battle of Biderra/Chinsurah
* Nabakrishna Deb
* Rabindranath Tagore

Localities|

* Kolkata metropolitan area
* Neighbourhoods
* list
* Streets (list)

Buildings|

* Belvedere Estate
* Indian Museum
* Jorasanko Thakur Bari
* Calcutta High Court
* Currency Building
* Bankshall Court
* Marble Palace
* National Library of India
* Netaji Bhawan
* Raj Bhavan, Kolkata
* Sabarna Sangrahashala
* Shaheed Minar
* Victoria Memorial
* St. Paul's Cathedral
* Metcalfe Hall
* Writers' Building
* Metropolitan Building
* Grand Hotel
* Shobhabazar Rajbari
* Esplanade Mansions

High
rises|

Chatterjee International Center
South City
Tata Centre
Industry House
Everest House
Jeevan Sudha
Government of India Building
Hiland Park
The 42
Urbana
Uniworld City

Education|

| Secondary|

* Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy
* B. T. Road Government Sponsored H. S. School
* Calcutta Boys' School
* Calcutta Girls' High School
* Don Bosco School, Park Circus
* Hare School
* Hindu School, Kolkata
* Kendriya Vidyalaya
* La Martiniere Calcutta
* Loreto Schools
* Baranagore Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama High School
* Ramakrishna, Narendrapur
* Scottish Church Collegiate School
* South Point School
* St. Xavier's Collegiate School
* St. James' School (Kolkata)

|

Higher|

* Aliah University
* Asiatic Society
* Asutosh College
* Marine Engineering and Research Institute
* Bethune College
* Government College of Engineering and Ceramic Technology
* Government College of Art & Craft
* Medical College and Hospital
* Calcutta National Medical College
* Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur
* IIM
* IISER
* Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management
* Indian Statistical Institute
* Jadavpur University
* Maulana Azad College
* Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies
* Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology
* Netaji Subhas Open University
* National Institute for Research in Bacterial Infections
* Presidency University
* Rabindra Bharati University
* Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics
* School of Tropical Medicine
* Scottish Church College
* St. Xavier's College
* University of Calcutta
* West Bengal University of Health Sciences
* West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences
* Calcutta School of Music
* Narula Institute of Technology
* Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute
* Vivek Tirtha

Industry and
economy|

* ABP Group
* Allahabad Bank
* AMRI Hospitals
* Andrew Yule and Company
* Baidyanath Group
* Balmer Lawrie
* Batanagar
* Bengal Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals
* Berger Paints
* Bharat Bhari Udyog Nigam
* Biecco Lawrie
* Birds Jute and Export
* Birla Corporation
* Braithwaite & Co.
* Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Company
* Bridge and Roof Company
* Britannia Industries
* Burn & Company
* Burnpur
* Burn Standard Company
* Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation (CESC)
* Calcutta Stock Exchange
* Chandras' Chemical Factory
* Coal India
* Damodar Valley Corporation
* Emami
* Exide Industries
* Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers
* GKB Opticals
* Hawkers
* Hind Motor
* Hindustan Ambassador
* IISCO Steel Plant
* India Government Mint, Kolkata
* ITC Limited
* Jai Balaji group
* Jessop & Company
* Kolkata Port Trust
* Lexulous
* Limtex
* Lux Industries
* National Insurance Company
* Peerless Group
* Saregama
* Sinclairs Hotels Limited
* Tata Global Beverages
* The Park Hotels
* UCO Bank
* United Bank of India

Transportation|

| Road|

* Calcutta Tramways Company
* Calcutta State Transport Corporation
* Kalyani Expressway
* Kolkata Bus Rapid Transit System
* West Bengal Transport Corporation
* South Bengal State Transport Corporation
* Howrah Bridge (Rabindra Setu)
* Belghoria Expressway
* Vidyasagar Setu
* Vivekananda Setu
* Nivedita Setu
* Golden Quadrilateral
* Rickshaw
* Hand-pulled rickshaw

|

Rail|

* Kolkata Metro
* Kolkata Suburban Railway
* Eastern Railway
* South Eastern Railway
* Trams in Kolkata
* Kolkata LRTS
* Howrah railway station
* Kolkata railway station
* Sealdah railway station
* Shalimar railway station
* Kolkata Monorail

Sea|

* Port of Kolkata

Air|

* Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport
* List of airports

Culture|

* Kolkata Book Fair
* Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk
* Calcutta Youth Choir
* Coffee House
* Dwarkin
* Festivals
* Kolkata International Film Festival
* Dover Lane Music Conference
* Kolkata in the media
* Music of Bengal
* Nandan
* Priya
* Rabindra Nritya Natya
* Rabindra Sangeet
* Ritwik Ghatak
* Satyajit Ray
* Feluda
* Byomkesh Bakshi
* Ghanada
* Prostitution in Kolkata
* Tenida
* Tollywood
* Ghosts in Bengali culture
* Adda
* Rabindra Tirtha
* Nazrul Tirtha
* Mishti Hub
* Football
* Kolkata derby
* Group theatre of Kolkata

| Ethnic enclaves|

* Bow Barracks (Anglo-Indian)
* Chinatown, Kolkata (Chinese)
* Tangra, Kolkata (Chinese)
* Zakaria Street (Bihari Muslim)
* Armani-para (Armenian)

|

Places of
worship|

| Hindu|

* Belur Math
* Birla Mandir, Kolkata
* Dakshineswar Kali Temple
* Kalighat
* Kripamayee Kali Temple
* Baranagar Math
* Alambazar Math

|

Christian|

* St. Paul's Cathedral
* Holy Rosary Cathedral (Portuguese Church)
* St. John's Church
* Parasnath Temple

Others|

* Nakhoda Mosque
* Tipu Sultan Mosque
* Chinese temples in Kolkata
* Magen David Synagogue

Sports|

* ATK
* Barasat Stadium
* B.C. Roy Trophy
* Beighton Cup
* Bengal cricket team
* Bhawanipore FC
* Calcutta Cricket and Football Club
* Calcutta Polo Club
* Calcutta South Club
* Bengal Tigers
* Calcutta Cricket and Football Club
* Calcutta Football League
* Dalhousie AC
* East Bengal FC
* East Bengal Ground
* Eastern Railway FC
* Eden Gardens
* Indian Football Association
* IFA Shield
* Kalighat Milan Sangha FC
* Kishore Bharati Krirangan
* Kolkata derby
* Kolkata Knight Riders
* Kolkata Police Friendship Cup Football Tournament
* Kolkata Vipers
* Mohammedan Sporting Club
* Mohammedan Sporting Ground
* Mohun Bagan Super Giant
* Mohun Bagan Ground
* Netaji Indoor Stadium
* Indian Arrows
* United SC
* Rabindra Sarobar Stadium
* Salt Lake Stadium
* Sunfeast Open
* Southern Samity
* Subroto Cup
* Aryan FC
* Tollygunge Agragami FC
* West Bengal football team

Other topics|

* Adwaita
* Zoological Garden, Alipore
* Bengal Club
* Calcutta Club
* Calcutta Rowing Club
* Central Forensic Science Laboratory
* Chinese of Calcutta
* Early phase of printing in Calcutta
* Electoral constituencies
* List of people from Kolkata
* Fort William
* Hooghly River
* Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden
* Maidan
* Missionaries of Charity
* Princeton Club
* Rabindra Sarobar
* Royal Calcutta Golf Club
* Sonagachi
* South Park Street Cemetery
* Tollygunge Club
* Tala tank

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Urban rail transit in India

Suburban
rail|

| Operational|

* Chennai Suburban Railway
* Delhi Suburban Railway
* Delhi–Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System
* Hyderabad Multi-Modal Transport System
* Kolkata Suburban Railway
* Lucknow
* Barabanki–Lucknow Suburban Railway
* Lucknow–Kanpur Suburban Railway
* Mumbai Suburban Railway
* Pune Suburban Railway

|

Under
construction

* Bengaluru Suburban Railway
* Delhi–Alwar Regional Rapid Transit System

Planned|

* Ahmedabad Suburban Railway
* Nagpur broad-gauge Metro

Proposed|

* Delhi–Sonipat–Panipat Regional Rapid Transit System

Rapid
transit|

| Operational|

* Agra Metro
* Ahmedabad Metro
* Bengaluru Metro
* Chennai Metro
* Chennai MRTS
* Delhi Metro
* Hyderabad Metro
* Indore Metro
* Jaipur Metro
* Kanpur Metro
* Kochi Metro
* Kolkata Metro
* Lucknow Metro
* Mumbai Metro
* Nagpur Metro
* Navi Mumbai Metro
* Noida Metro
* Pune Metro
* Rapid Metro Gurgaon

|

Under
construction|

* Bhoj Metro (Bhopal)
* Patna Metro
* Surat Metro
* Bhubaneswar Metro
* Meerut Metro

Planned|

* Chandigarh Metro
* Coimbatore Metro
* Gorakhpur Metro
* Guwahati Metro
* Jabalpur Metro
* Ludhiana Metro
* Madurai Metro
* Thiruvananthapuram Metro
* Varanasi Metro

Proposed|

* Bareilly Metro
* Jammu Metro
* Ranchi Metro
* Srinagar Metro
* Thane Metro
* Trichy Metro
* Warangal Metro

Monorail|

| Operational|

* Mumbai Monorail

|

Proposed|

* Aizawl Monorail
* Indore Monorail
* Kanpur Monorail
* Patna Monorail
* Warangal Monorail

Cancelled|

* Bengaluru Monorail
* Chennai Monorail
* Kolkata Monorail
* Pune Monorail
* Tiruchirappalli Monorail
* Goa Skybus Metro

Metrolite|

| Planned|

* Gorakhpur Metro
* Greater Nashik Metro
* Kolkata Light Rail Transit
* Kozhikode Light Metro

|

Proposed|

* Prayagraj Metro
* Uttarakhand Metro

Cancelled|

* Chennai Metrolite
* Delhi Metrolite

Tram|

| Operational|

* Kolkata Tram

|

Defunct|

* Bhavnagar Tram
* Chennai Tram
* Delhi Tram
* Kanpur Tram
* Kochi Tram
* Mumbai Tram
* Nashik Tram
* Patna Tram

* v
* t
* e

Railways in Eastern India

National network/
trunk lines|

* Barauni–Guwahati line
* Grand Chord
* Howrah–Chennai main line
* Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line
* Howrah–Nagpur–Mumbai line
* Howrah–New Delhi main line
* Howrah–New Jalpaiguri line
* Howrah–Prayagraj–Mumbai line
* Sahibganj loop

Other lines/sections|

| Interstate|

* Asansol–Gaya section
* Asansol–Patna section
* Asansol–Tatanagar–Kharagpur line
* Barauni–Gorakhpur, Raxaul and Jainagar lines
* Barkakana–Son Nagar line
* Barsoi–New Farakka section
* Barsoi–Radhikapur branch line
* Dumka–Bhagalpur line
* Gaya–Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction section
* Hatia–Rourkela line
* Jasidih–Dumka–Rampurhat line
* Jharsuguda–Vizianagaram line
* Katihar–Siliguri line
* Kharagpur–Puri line
* Khurda Road–Visakhapatnam section
* Kothavalasa–Kirandul line
* New Jalpaiguri–Alipurduar–Samuktala Road line
* New Jalpaiguri–New Bongaigaon section
* Tatanagar–Bilaspur section

|

Bihar|

* Bakhtiyarpur–Tilaiya line
* Barauni–Katihar section
* Barauni–Samastipur section
* Fatuha–Tilaiya line
* Gaya–Kiul line
* Jogbani–Katihar line
* Mansi–Saharsa line
* Mokama–Barauni section
* Muzaffarpur–Gorakhpur line (via Hajipur, Raxaul and Sitamarhi)
* Muzaffarpur–Gorakhpur main line
* Muzaffarpur–Sitamarhi section
* Muzaffarpur–Hajipur section
* Narkatiaganj–Bhikhna Thori branch line
* Neora–Daniyawan–Bihar Sharif–Sheikhpura line
* Patna–Gaya line
* Patna–Mughalsarai section
* Patna–Sonepur–Hajipur section
* Saharsa–Purnia line
* Saharsa–Forbesganj line
* Samastipur–Muzaffarpur section

Jharkhand|

* Barkakana–Netaji S.C.Bose Gomoh line
* Barkakana–Muri–Chandil line
* Dhanbad–Chandrapura line
* Railways in Jharia Coalfield
* Koderma–Hazaribagh–Barkakana–Ranchi line
* Madhupur–Giridih–Koderma line
* Netaji S.C.Bose Gomoh–Hatia line

Odisha|

* Khurda Road–Bolangir line
* Cuttack–Sambalpur line

West Bengal|

* Ahmadpur–Katwa line
* Alipurduar–Bamanhat branch line
* Andal–Sainthia branch line
* Andal–Sitarampur loop line
* Bandel–Howrah Line
* Bandel–Katwa line
* Bankura–Masagram line
* Bardhaman–Asansol section
* Bardhaman–Katwa line
* Barharwa–Azimganj–Katwa loop
* Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
* Eklakhi–Balurghat branch line
* Haldibari–New Jalpaiguri line
* Howrah–Barddhaman main line
* Howrah–Bardhaman chord
* Howrah–Kharagpur line
* Kharagpur–Bankura–Adra line
* New Mal–Changrabandha–New Cooch Behar line
* Santragachi–Amta branch line
* Sealdah Main and North section
* Calcutta Chord link line
* Kolkata Circular Railway
* Sealdah–Bangaon line
* Sealdah–Ranaghat–Gede line
* Ranaghat–Krishnanagar City–Lalgola line
* Sealdah South section
* Sheoraphuli–Bishnupur branch line

Suburban
rail transport|

* Kolkata Metro
* Kolkata Suburban Railway
* Kolkata Circular Railway

Monorail|

* Kolkata Monorail
* Patna Monorail

Defunct lines|

| Revived/
Under revival|

* Ahmedpur–Katwa Railway
* Bankura–Damodar Railway
* Barasat–Basirhat Light Railway
* Burdwan–Katwa Railway
* Bakhtiarpur–Bihar Light Railway
* Futwah–Islampur Light Railway

|

Inactive|

* Bengal Provincial Railway
* East Coast State Railway
* Kalighat Falta Railway
* Mayurbhanj State Railway
* Dehri Rohtas Light Railway
* Patna–Digha Ghat line
* Parlakimedi Light Railway

Zones & Divisions|

| Eastern|

* Asansol
* Howrah
* Malda
* Sealdah

|

East Central|

* Danapur
* Dhanbad
* Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya
* Samastipur
* Sonpur

East Coast|

* Sambalpur
* Khurda Road
* Waltair

North Eastern|

* Varanasi

Northeast Frontier|

* Katihar
* Alipurduar

South Eastern|

* Adra
* Chakradharpur
* Kharagpur
* Ranchi

Production units/
workshops|

* Chittaranjan Locomotive Works
* Bharat Bhari Udyog Nigam
* Braithwaite & Co.
* Burn Standard Company Limited
* Bharat Wagon and Engineering
* Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Company
* Carriage Repair Workshop, Harnaut
* Electric Locomotive Factory, Madhepura

Transit points
with Bangladesh|

| Active|

* Haldibari–Chilahati
* Singhabad–Rohanpur
* Radhikapur–Biral
* Gede–Darshana
* Petrapole–Benapole

|

Defunct|

* Mahisasan–Shahbajpur
* Changrabandha–Burimari
* New Gitaldaha–Mogalhat

Indian railheads
near India–Nepal border|

* Raxaul Junction
* Bairgania
* Jaynagar
* Jogbani
* Laukaha Bazar
* Thakurganj

Railway companies|

* East Indian Railway Company
* Bengal Nagpur Railway
* Indian Branch Railway Company
* Indian Railways
* Martin's Light Railways

See also|

* Bholu (mascot)
* Suburban rail in India

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template