Kolkata: With rain forecast ahead, Metro has started urgent road repair work outside Kolkata airport to address concerns over waterlogging on the approach road. Airport officials had cited the issue at a meeting on Wednesday after passengers complained of waterlogging as they take the right side to get on the flyover on VIP Road that leads to the airport terminal. In the past too, this stretch has been inundated, resulting in troubles for flyers. The inundation at Haldiram on VIP Road had also hit airport operations several times.Director of Kolkata Airport, Vikram Singh, said the issue was discussed with Metro authorities on Wednesday, following which they started the work. “We highlighted two critical locations — one near the airport and another on VIP Road — where waterlogging was severely affecting airport operations. Metro authorities responded promptly, and repair work started from Thursday,” Singh said. Metro officials said a joint inspection was conducted on Wednesday evening and engineers associated with the Orange Line project identified potholes, damaged stretches and areas where the ground had weakened because of ongoing construction.Airport officials attributed the condition primarily to the tunnelling work for the final stretch of the New Garia-Airport Metro corridor.However, the repair work itself triggered heavy traffic congestion on Thursday morning. Following complaints of traffic snarls, Bidhannagar Police intervened and requested Metro to suspend the work during peak traffic hours. An agreement was subsequently reached under which road restoration will now be carried out only during non-peak hours to minimise inconvenience to commuters while ensuring the repairs are completed at the earliest.
