The city is reportedly moving closer to establishing the long-awaited metro-airport connectivity, with the completion of track laying between Dum Dum Cantonment and the airport. Once operational, this corridor will allow commuters to travel swiftly along the Blue (New Garia-Dakshineswar), Green (Howrah Maidan-Esplanade), and Orange (Ruby-New Garia on EM Bypass) lines to the airport, passing through Noapara. Most notably, it was indicated that Howrah station will be connected to the airport. Metro Railway General Manager P Uday Kumar Reddy is said to have conducted his first trolley inspection along the 4-km stretch of the Yellow Line between Dum Dum Cantonment and the airport. The construction of the airport metro station (Jai Hind) is reportedly progressing rapidly. Reddy is also reported to have inspected the Yellow Line’s 3-km Noapara-Dum Dum Cantonment section, travelling by metro rake to Noapara and Dum Dum Cantonment stations, before undertaking a trolley inspection of the next 4 km to Jai Hind station, reviewing the progress of the under-construction Jessore Road station along the way. It was mentioned that the major obstacle for the Dum Dum Cantonment-airport stretch has been removed, with the final group of encroachers relocated from the metro alignment at Jessore Road. An official is said to have commented that in February, the significant roadblock at Jessore Road was cleared, which at the time raised hopes that the 7-km Noapara-airport section could be opened by Durga Puja. The entire corridor is expected to eventually cover 16 km, from Noapara to Barasat. Of this, the 3-km Noapara-Dum Dum Cantonment stretch has already undergone the mandatory inspection by the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS). Sources suggest that Metro Railway is prioritising reaching the airport from the Yellow Line side, rather than the Orange (29-km New Garia-Airport) corridor, which faces significant challenges, particularly in its final 3.5-km section from City Centre II to the airport. The Orange Line has already missed its January 31, 2024 deadline, with Afcons Infrastructure, contracted for the Rs 533-crore project, reportedly encountering various issues, including delays in constructing the Chinar Park metro station. An official reportedly noted that the Yellow Line will be the city’s first metro connection to the airport. Once the connection is complete, travellers will be able to journey from New Garia to the airport by interchanging at Noapara. Commuters from the Bypass area can travel to New Garia and transfer to the Blue Line for Noapara, while those from Howrah can use the Green Line’s Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section to reach the airport via Noapara.