Kolkata Metro's Purple Line moves closer to completion after major tunnelling breakthrough at Victoria Memorial

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Sat, Jul 11, 01:56 AM IST • 2 min read

Kolkata Metro's ambitious Purple Line has achieved another significant construction milestone, bringing the city's expanding metro network one step closer to completion. On 10 July 2026, the Earth Pressure Balancing (EPB) Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) 'Durga' successfully broke through at the under-construction Victoria Memorial Metro station after completing a 1,723-metre tunnel drive from Kidderpore.

The breakthrough comes exactly one year after the 600-tonne, 95-metre-long TBM began its journey from a 17-metre-deep launch shaft at Kidderpore in July 2025. During the drive, the machine advanced beneath one of Kolkata's most sensitive heritage zones, including the Victoria Memorial precinct, while maintaining an average progress of nearly 200 metres per month under continuous engineering and safety monitoring.

This achievement marks a major milestone for the 5.05-km UG1 underground package of the 26.88-km Purple Line, which will eventually connect Joka with Esplanade. The corridor is expected to significantly improve connectivity across south and central Kolkata while reducing travel times for thousands of daily commuters.

Work on the underground section will now continue towards Park Street, with TBM Durga set to begin its next 950-metre tunnel drive. The second phase of tunnelling is targeted for completion by December 2026.

Meanwhile, the parallel down-line tunnel is also progressing rapidly. Twin TBM 'Divya' has already completed around 80% of its tunnel drive and is expected to achieve its breakthrough at Victoria Memorial in early August 2026.

The Purple Line is one of Kolkata Metro's largest ongoing infrastructure projects, with an estimated investment exceeding ₹2,600 crore. Once operational, it will strengthen integration across the city's metro network and improve access between residential, commercial and institutional hubs along the corridor.

Construction activities continue across multiple sections of the alignment, and the project remains on schedule for full commercial operations between late 2028 and early 2029.

As Kolkata continues expanding one of India's fastest-growing metro systems, milestones such as the Victoria Memorial breakthrough demonstrate the steady progress being made towards creating a faster, more reliable and sustainable urban transport network for the city.