Press Release

Kolkata, July 13, 2022: On 11th July, 2022, the Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Limited (KMRCL) flagged off the train from Sealdah Metro station to Phoolbagan Station through video conferencing from Howrah Maidan station.

Mrs. Smriti Irani, Hon'ble Minister for Women and Child Development and Minority Affairs, Govt. Of India; Mr. Arun Arora, Chairman of Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. & General Manager, Metro Railway; Mr.C.N.Jha, Managing Director, KMRCL and Mr. NAKAGAWA Koichi, Consul-General of Japan in Kolkata were part of the ceremony. It was commenced by observing one-minute silence in the memory of late former Prime Minister of Japan, Mr. Abe Shinzo.

Inaugurating the ceremony, Mrs. Smriti Irani said, "The extension to Sealdah, a terminal railway station in the city, will help around 35,000 passengers in their daily commute from adjoining districts. Government of India has done everything to provide impetus to infrastructure building of the Railways and the Metro services in view of increasing population."

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. NAKAGAWA Koichi, Consul-General of Japan in Kolkata, expressed his hope that the inauguration of Sealdah Metro Station will further enhance India-Japan relationship and Kolkata East-West Metro. And he also said "Government of Japan has been supporting this project so that it is expected to mitigate the traffic congestions, reduce air pollution, minimize the road accident and make travel smoother general people in Kolkata".

Commenting on the same, Mr SAITO Mitsunori, Chief Representative, JICA India Office said, "We recognize the need for a well-developed transport infrastructure and are pleased to finance metro system in Kolkata. The metro is well planned as a part of the integrated urban transportation of the city and the alignment covering the core districts of economic and cultural activities as well as interconnected with other transportation mode. JICA's cooperation will lead to the modal shift from road traffic to public transport system and will eventually lead to balanced regional development and improvement of environmental conditions."

JICA has been supporting in development of major metro projects in the country by providing funds and expertise, and facilitated construction for approx. 670km of metro rail network across 6 cities (Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad). JICA has extended ODA loans amounting to 360,821 million Japanese Yen (approximately INR* 24,000 Crore) for projects in West Bengal across various sectors.

About JICA

Established, by a specific law, as an incorporated administrative institution under the Government of Japan, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) aims to contribute to the promotion of international cooperation, as a sole Japanese governmental agency in charge of ODA implementation. JICA is the world's largest bilateral donor agency. JICA works as a bridge between Japan and emerging countries, and aids in forms of loan, grant and technical cooperation so that the emerging countries can strengthen their capabilities.

• JICA India Office Web
• JICA India Brochure
• JICA Facebook Page (external link)

For further information, please contact:

JICA India Office
Shusaku Takada / Aishwarya Mishra
+91 11 49097000
Takada.Shusaku@jica.go.jp
Mishra-Aishwarya@jica.go.jp

Edelman India
Rakhi Aurora
(+91) 9599067185
Rakhi.Aurora@edelman.com