KOLKATA: Bengal’s transport department has chosen five sites in the city to accommodate 550 inter-city and inter-state buses to and from Kolkata, revealed a report submitted to the Calcutta High Court. The buses will be relocated to these five sites till a multi-level bus parking plaza is built at the city centre.
The bench of Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Shampa Sarkar asked why it is impossible to construct a multi-level bus parking plaza at Esplanade as the majority of modern cities have such facilities. The bench has asked for affidavits from all agencies concerned to vent their opinions in this regard. The bench will hear the case again on October 6.
The report submitted to the court found the Santragachhi bus terminus spread over 3.5 acres will have 100 buses; the 5,250sqm land below the approach way to the Second Hooghly Bridge off St Georges Gate Road will accommodate 60 buses, 5.1acre HRBC land on Foreshore Road in Howrah will accommodate 200 buses, 4.5acre Howrah depot land on Duke Road will park 150 buses and the 76-cottah transport department land on AJC Bose Road will park 40 buses.
In its affidavit, the transport department said the land identification was done after a thorough inspection by a team comprising HRBC secretary, colonel (land) Bengal area, Indian Army, deputy commissioner (traffic) of Kolkata Police, deputy MD, WBTC, and representatives of state transport undertakings like WBTC, SBSTC and NBSTC, following meetings held by transport secretary Saumitra Mohan and chief secretary H K Dwivedi.
The bench was hearing the case filed by green activist Subhas Datta for non-compliance with the Supreme Court order for shifting the bus terminus from Esplanade. Datta on June 28, 2002, filed a writ petition in the HC for saving Victoria Memorial from the filthy fumes of vehicles, particularly buses. On September 28, 2007, the HC ordered a shift of the bus terminus from Esplanade to a distant place within six months and to restrict parking and movement of vehicles around Victoria Memorial.
The state moved the apex court saying developing such mammoth infrastructure in such a short span was an impossible proposition. The apex court upheld the HC order, without a specific time frame for implementation. Datta approached the court after more than two decades for complete non-compliance and further degradation of the Esplanade bus terminus.
Datta himself searched for land and identified two sites — one on Strand Road for the parking plaza for vehicles of HC lawyers and another near Hyde Road where the government can accommodate 500 buses.