Kolkata metro drilling row: Residents of Bowbazar stage protest over repeated cracks, water leakage

Kolkata: Residents of Durga Pituri Lane in the city’s Bowbazar area on Friday engaged in a verbal duel with Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRCL) officials over persistent cracks and water leaks in local buildings, which they allege have been caused by drilling operations.

KMRCL evacuated 52 people and relocated them on Thursday night to local hotels as a precautionary measure. This action followed reports of underground water leak during tunnel drilling in the Sealdah-Esplanade stertch of the east-west Metro corridor.

A KMRCL official said, "We have moved 52 people from 11 families to four nearby hotels as a precaution. Engineers said the leak has been contained, but we will monitor the situation for another day or two before allowing residents to return." Despite this, residents voiced their frustration, claiming that no one was taking responsibility for the ongoing issues.

Local councillor Biswarup Dey expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "People are fed up. Since 2019, KMRCL has failed to provide a deadline for resolving these issues. No one is taking responsibility, and people have been displaced from their homes." Residents of the Bowbazar area in central Kolkata demanded accountability from officials, with one of them commenting, "Every officer is shifting their responsibility to someone else. We want someone to take responsibility." In response, residents briefly blocked access to the Central Metro station, causing inconvenience to passengers during office hours. The Kolkata Police intervened swiftly to restore order.

The issues of subsidence and building cracks have been ongoing since 2022, with significant damage reported in Durga Pituri in 2022 and 2023. The situation remains volatile with residents threatening to protest on the Metro tracks if their concerns are not addressed.