Sealdah division plans major overhaul of Dum Dum station
The Statesman | 7 February 2026
When Binoy Kumar sets out for work from his village at Goyalbati in Habra, he keeps his fingers crossed to be able to reach office on time. A journey in the local train from Habra station to Sealdah and then to his workplace at Ballygunge has been a crucial part of his daily life for years. However, train delays around Dum Dum station resulting in reporting late for work sometimes makes his day tough.
Similar are the grievances of his fellow passengers. “Quite often, the train just stands still for several minutes around Dum Dum station. In such situations, we are unaware when we would be able to reach the destination. Such delays hamper the day’s work and we are at a loss in office,” said a regular commuter of the route and co-passenger of Binoy.
Taking cognisance of such delays, the Sealdah Division is working on plans of a major overhaul at Dum Dum which is considered as one of the hindrances in enhancing train punctuality, increase in train operations or even capacity strengthening. “At Dum Dum, trains are operated from various directions like Dankuni, Bangao, Barasat and so on. But the evacuation sometimes resulted in two or three trains being halted at Dum Dum Cantonment and the approaching routes of Dum Dum Junction,” explained an official.
To overcome this problem, the divisional railway authorities have adopted a crucial upgrade of Dum Dum. To begin with, the signalling system is being upgraded. Dum Dum station has gone through yard remodelling works but the signal upgrade which had some compliances from the office of the commissioner of railway safety, is awaiting approval. Once the much-awaited nod from the CRS is received, Dum Dum would have improved the signalling system. As learnt from official sources, the entire section is being upgraded to an automatic system.
Plans are also underway to increase the capacity of operating trains at Dum Dum. “After the upgrade work is completed at Dum Dum, we would be able to operate two trains at a time instead of one. “If a train is coming from Baranagar towards Dum Dum, we would be able to take trains from Belgharia also simultaneously,” elaborated the railway official. “We are working on a way out, where the two trains could be operated at a gap of 120 metres without having any chances of collision,” he added. With this, trains awaiting a go ahead at Dum Dum Cantonment or Baranagar, would be able enter Dum Dum station faster and the capacity would be enhanced and shunting operations would become quicker.