In a official press release posted on their website, Kolkata Metro Railway has announced extended operating hours to handle the Durga Puja rush. The plan includes night-long services on the Blue and Green Lines for pandal hoppers, the first time many commuters will see the network respond at this scale during the festival.
Services on the Blue and Green Lines will run from 6 am to 11 pm from their terminal points on Panchami and Shashthi, which fall on October 15 and 16. For Saptami, Ashtami and Navami, the timings have been adjusted to allow overnight travel on the two corridors that carry the heaviest passenger load.
The festival changes come on top of a broader schedule expansion. The Blue and Green Lines moved to a 6 am first train and a 10:30 pm last train on weekdays and Saturdays from July 27, with Sunday services also ending at 10:30 pm. Before that, the Blue Line’s last train left at around 9:44 pm and the Green Line’s at about 10:05 pm. The longer window was introduced in response to passenger demand and aims to cut waiting times at both ends of the day.
Ahead of Puja, the metro has also added weekend trips. Extra services ran on October 3 and 4 and are scheduled for October 10 and 11 across the Blue, Green and Yellow Lines, aimed at pre-festival shoppers. On Saturdays, the Blue Line runs 272 services instead of the usual 252, while the Green Line runs 236 against 212 and the Yellow Line 120. First and last train timings remain unchanged on those days.
Eastern Railway has also announced 51 special Sealdah local trains between October 16 and 21, including overnight services, which should make interchanges with the metro easier for people travelling in from the suburbs.
Metro officials have previously urged passengers to use smart cards or the official mobile app and QR tickets to avoid queues at counters. Expect crowded platforms in the afternoons and evenings, particularly around Esplanade and other central stations.
Since timings can change, travellers should check the official notice for station-wise first and last train times before heading out, especially on the night-long days.