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Friday turned into a nightmare for commuters in Kolkata as multiple transport issues hit the city during the festive season. The disruption of Blue Line Metro services, fewer buses on the road, high auto fares, and heavy traffic made travelling extremely difficult for pandal-hoppers, office-goers, and last-minute shoppers. Many stated
the situation had been the same for the last four days.
Reason Behind Metro Disruption
The major trouble began around 12.54 pm when a 26-year-old youth, Harshit Agarwal from Behala, attempted suicide by jumping in front of a Dakshineswar-bound train at Jatin Das Metro station. He got stuck near the first coach and was rescued by Metro staff and police. Power supply was immediately cut, and he was taken to SSKM Hospital. Due to the incident, Metro services were stopped in parts of the North-South corridor, and trains ran only between Maidan and Dakshineswar in the north and between Tollygunge and Shahid Khudiram in the south. Five stations between Tollygunge and Maidan remained closed until normal services resumed at 2.05 pm. However, passengers' long delays continued even afterward, with many waiting over an hour for a train.
Road Transport Disruption
Around 50% of buses were missing from the roads, forcing people to depend on app cabs and bike taxis, which had high surge pricing. Some minibuses resumed, but many were taken over by the traffic police and had reduced routes.
Auto-rickshaw fares also shot up. Since autos are banned in the evenings during puja days, drivers increased fares by ₹5 to ₹15 during the day, claiming they needed to compensate for losses. Routes that usually cost ₹25 were being charged at ₹35 or even ₹40. In several areas, including Sealdah, College Street, and Behala, commuters were forced to pay extra or take multiple autos for a single journey. Illegal auto routes also emerged to cash in on tired pandal-hoppers.
