by April. In these sections, above ground retail buildings have been shifted in a phased manner prior to tunnelling. The Esplanade – Sealdah section will be executed by ITD Cementation JV and started in May 2018. The Esplanade - Sealdah section has been delayed due to the detection of steel beams that were left during the construction of the first line of Kolkata Metro. The NATM tunneling method is being used to cut the steel beams. This work was concluded in February 2019 and then the main tunneling commenced. In September 2019, when TBM Chandi reached Bowbazar, it hit a massive aquafier, less than a kilometer from its destination, Sealdah. It led to soil subsidence and many buildings collapsed. The residents were shifted to hotels and apartments. Later the land was stabilized by grouting and the unsafe buildings were pulled down. High Court ordered to stop further tunneling immediately. Due to the incident the tunneling was delayed, thus delaying the overall deadline for one year. It was planned that the affected TBM would be taken out from the incident site, and the second one will complete the tunneling till Sealdah. Then it will be reversed again to complete the remaining portion of the tunnel of first TBM. In mid-February 2020, High Court asked to resume the work in the affected area. List of stations (East to West) Inauguration 1st phase On 3 February 2020, the final inauguration date was revealed. After 11 years, since the construction started, the first phase of the line was inaugurated on 13 February by Union Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal, with commercial services to start the very next day. The service will start from 8 am and ends at 8 pm, with 37 pairs of services a day. 5 rakes would run at a frequency of 20 minutes. Dipak Kumar drove the first train. In October 2021, services up to Phoolbagan were extended as a part of Phase 1A. 2nd Phase On 14 July 2022, the first commercial run from Sealdah metro station was made, as a part of Phase 2. Infrastructure Stations All the stations in this line will be equipped with Platform Screen Doors to keep people away from the tracks. Mott MacDonald is the detailed design consultant for all the elevated stations, whereas Lee Harris Pomeroy Architects have designed all the underground stations. Out of the 6 underground stations, 3 will be