The Tollygunge-Garia Metro Rail extension that took off in March 1999 finally saw the light of the day in August 2009 when Mamata Banerjee flagged off the new route that had been conceived by the NDA government.
Interestingly, while the state government has borne 33 per cent of the cost of the 8.5 kilometer stretch, no one from the state cabinet was to be seen at the inauguration. The project cost is estimated to be around Rs 1,032 crore. Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was present at the event.
There would be five elevated stations,Tollygunge, Kudghat, Bansdroni, Naktala, Garia Bazar. However, the minister has decided to rename the stations after famous personalities and their works as Mahanayak Uttam Kumar, Netaji, Mastarda Surya Sen, Gitanjali, Kavi Nazrul respectively. The Minister said the Railways would build a 75-bed hospital to be named after Bengali film director Tapan Sinha, and a world-class stadium at Behala to be named after internationally acclaimed film-maker Satyajit Ray. “These projects have already been sanctioned in the Rail Budget of 2009-10,” Banerjee said. She said that there were plans to extend the Metro Rail link to have and Dum Dum-Dakshineswar-Barrackpore Metro connection.