Kolkata Metro services on both up and down lines were disrupted for several minutes on Friday morning after a stray dog entered the tracks at Shobhabazar station, forcing authorities to cut power and begin a rescue operation.
The incident occurred when a Metro train travelling from Dakshineswar reached Shyambazar at around 7.38 am. The train was brought to a halt and remained delayed while officials dealt with the animal, according to a report by Sangbad Pratidin. Passengers were reportedly alarmed by the sudden stoppage.
Metro authorities then informed passengers that a dog had entered the tracks at Shobhabazar. The electrical connection to the affected line was disconnected as a safety measure, after which efforts began to remove the animal from the track area. Services returned to normal approximately 10 minutes later, the report said.
The disruption highlights the operational risks created when an unauthorised person, animal or object enters a Metro track zone. Power must be isolated before staff can safely access the tracks, meaning even a short intrusion can affect train movement beyond the station where it occurs. In this case, the interruption affected services on both directions for a limited period.
The incident also raises questions about how the dog crossed the station’s access controls. Metro stations typically use entry gates, ticket checks and staff monitoring to regulate passenger movement. The report said the animal entered despite these security arrangements, but it did not establish the precise point or route through which it accessed the station and tracks.
Some passengers alleged that staff on duty had been inattentive, with claims that some employees were using mobile phones or talking among themselves. These allegations have not been independently established in the supplied report and should not be treated as a confirmed finding. The report said Metro authorities had not issued a detailed statement on the incident at the time of publication.
The episode is not described as unprecedented. The report recalled that, during Kali Puja in 2025, a dog had entered a Metro station while apparently trying to escape the sound of fireworks. The recurrence places attention on the practical limits of station security, particularly where open access points, street-level entrances or platform-edge vulnerabilities may allow animals to enter operational areas.
For passengers, the immediate effect was a short delay, but the incident required a coordinated response involving train control, electrical isolation and animal rescue. The service disruption ended after the dog was removed and the power supply was restored. A fuller account from Metro authorities would be needed to establish how the animal entered the station and whether any additional security measures will follow.
