KOLKATA:
Rachna and
Prerna have done their bit. Now it’s time for
Chandi and Urvi to take over. Chandi and Urvi, the new pair of tunnel-boring machines, will bore the tunnels for
East-West Metro corridor between
Esplanade and Sealdah.
Next week, Kolkata
Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC), the agency that’s implementing the Rs 8,575-crore project, is most likely to organize the naamkaran (christening ceremony) for the giant machines before they start burrowing-and building from Esplanade next month. ITD-Cementation, the firm building the tunnel, hit upon the names — Chandi and Urvi — after much brainstorming. They have sent the names to KMRC for final approval. TBM-S615 and TBM-616 have remained nameless since German manufacturer
Herrenknecht delivered them in March, 2017.
“The new pair of TBMs, currently undergoing hectic upkeep inside a 40-acre casting yard in New Town, will shortly begin work from Esplanade,” a KMRC engineer said, adding, “Their names will be announced in a ceremony next week.” According to the tunneling tradition, a TBM cannot start work until it is given a name. It is usually named after a woman since it is believed to bring good luck to the project.
“Those entrusted to name the TBMs had a tough time zeroing in on a suitable name. Then they remembered ‘Chandi’, our former tunnel manager who has contributed much in the project. We chose the surname, because it is also Maa Durga’s other name,” said an official. Meanwhile, TBMs S639 and S640, affectionately called Rachna and Prerna, have recently completed their journey and are gearing to be parked in an area reserved for them 28m below Curzon Park. Some of their gantries are being dismantled to be carried away, but the main part — the 10m-long cutter-heads — can’t be extracted because the retrieval shaft hasn’t been built yet.
