Kolkata, 19 September (HS): Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya has written to Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar, presenting a formal proposal for developing a Regional Rapid Transit System network in West Bengal.

According to the communication, the parliamentarian advocated for the high-speed, metro-like rail transit project to link key growth hubs across South Bengal directly with Kolkata. Along with the proposal, he submitted an extensive preliminary study and feasibility assessment to help resolve mounting transit congestion and address the capacity constraints facing the state's conventional suburban rail infrastructure.

Prepared by transit researchers Souradip Sarkar and Adri Roy Chowdhury, the proposal designates the Maidan area in central Kolkata as the principal radiating hub connecting four major corridors. The first proposed alignment spans 135 km from Kolkata to Mayapur via Kalyani and Krishnanagar. The second route covers 232 km connecting Kolkata to Asansol via Burdwan and Durgapur, incorporating dedicated urban metro systems for Durgapur and Asansol. The third corridor covers 102 km running from Kolkata through Falta and Diamond Harbour to Haldia. The fourth corridor extends 135 km from Santragachi through Kolaghat and Kharagpur to Medinipur.

The representation highlights that urban centers such as Durgapur, Asansol, Kharagpur, Krishnanagar, and Haldia have evolved into major industrial, educational, commercial, maritime, and tourism hubs heavily reliant on congested transport links. To minimize fresh land acquisition, the planners suggested laying the transit corridors largely parallel to existing highway and railway rights-of-way. Furthermore, the report recommends establishing a dedicated Special Purpose Vehicle, the West Bengal Rapid Transit Corporation, jointly owned by the Government of India and the Government of West Bengal, modeled on the National Capital Region Transport Corporation. The MP urged the ministry to commission formal engineering reviews, ridership demand forecasts, and financial feasibility assessments to expedite the initiative.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh