Kalighat skywalk is finally set to open
After years of delays and engineering hurdles, Kolkata’s long-awaited Kalighat skywalk is finally set to open on the eve of Poila Boishakh.
After more false starts than a rainy-day cricket match, the Kalighat skywalk — four years in the making and nearly declared urban legend — is finally ready for its grand unveiling this Monday. The ribbon-cutting will be done in style, just in time for Poila Boishakh. A fitting way to ring in the Bengali New Year, wouldn’t you say?
Now, for those unfamiliar, this isn’t just your run-of-the-mill footbridge. The Kalighat skywalk is a whopping 435 metres long and rises 6.5 metres above the road — that’s high enough to give you a decent bird’s-eye view of the hustle and bustle below without needing to climb a clock tower.
The main stretch — or trunk, if we’re being anatomical about it — begins at the SP Mukherjee Road-Kali Temple Road intersection and ends outside the gates of the iconic Kalighat temple. A cheeky 30-metre arm branches off from the Kalighat fire brigade intersection and merges with the trunk near the police station. You could say it’s a well-connected bit of overhead real estate.
There are five entry and exit points dotted along the skywalk, like pearls on a string — from SP Mukherjee Road, outside the temple, along Sadananda Road, near the fire station, and one right from the second floor of the new Kalighat Hawkers’ Corner (now there’s a name that promises snacks with your skyline).
The whole affair is supported by 50 portal-shaped structures — think giant goalposts holding up a walkway, with nary a football in sight. And if you’re worried about the pavement looking a bit peaky underneath, rest easy. The roads and footpaths below have had a proper makeover. New paver blocks have been laid, the path widened from a miserly 6-7ft to a roomy 12ft, and hawker spaces carefully demarcated to keep things ticking along without stepping on toes.
But it hasn’t all been a walk in the park. The skywalk’s journey from blueprint to reality has had more twists and turns than a Bengal detective novel. Originally slated for completion in 18 months when work began in October 2021, it has since danced to a tune of shifting deadlines and logistical hiccups.
KMC engineers had their hands full, dodging everything from brick drains and high-tension wires to the sort of water pipes that pop up just when you think you’ve seen it all. Oh, and let’s not forget the redundant gas line — that little blighter had to go as well.
Then there were the interruptions — and no, we’re not talking about tea breaks. Work had to be paused each year for 15 days during Poila Boishakh festivities, halted again during Gangasagar Mela, and frozen entirely between Durga Puja and Kali Puja. Add to that the weekly chaos of Tuesdays and Saturdays, when the influx of temple-goers is at its peak, plus the annual monsoon mayhem — it’s a wonder they got anything done at all.
Still, despite the odds, the project — which cost a cool ₹100 crore — has finally crossed the finish line. For devotees, pedestrians, and perhaps even the odd selfie-seeker, the skywalk promises both utility and a bit of elevation in more ways than one.
So come Monday, if you’re in the mood for a bit of a ramble above the crowds, with Kalighat’s temple bells ringing faintly in the background, the new skywalk’s your golden ticket. Just mind your step and don’t forget to look down — from a safe distance, of course.
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