On Sunday, the Metro Railway in Kolkata solemnly bid farewell to non-AC rakes, some of which had been in operation since its beginning as the country’s first subterranean railway in 1984. Mr Joshi ceremonially sent off the last non-AC Metro rake from Mahanayak Uttam Kumar station to Noapara.
The Kolkata Metro Railway, which began service 37 years ago between Esplanade and Bhowanipore (now Netaji Bhavan station), a distance of 3.40 km, presently covers 31.3 km.
The older non-air conditioned rakes of Kolkata Metro Railway have been sent on a new trip of retirement after serving for over three decades and making the city proud for attaining a breakthrough with India’s first underground transport. The older non-AC rakes have been removed from commercial service and are now sitting idle in the Noapara car shed.
Notably, the trip of the earlier non-AC rakes in Kolkata began in October 1984, when the city gained a crowning jewel in the form of the country’s first underground metro service. However, around five months before the first metro’s ultimate commissioning, the rakes were moved to the underground path by lowering the coaches with the use of cranes.
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A few times, some non-AC rakes were also given a facelift to compete with the air-conditioned coaches. As a result, the non-AC rakes had to labour for years longer than their prescribed life. A cutting-edge rake from Dalian, China, was delivered to the city in 2019. The Chinese rakes, on the other hand, have yet to be trundled because they are still on trial.
After serving as a vital component of the city’s lifeline for over 30 years, the non-AC rakes are now ready to take on new responsibilities and be employed for trial runs in the planned metro corridors. The rake’s coaches, which were chugged out for the first time during the maiden run in 1984, are on display at the Howrah Rail Museum.
