Subhas Chandra Bose Udyan opens: At the onset of Netaji’s 125th birth anniversary year, Subhas Chandra Bose Udyan opened in AE Block on January 23. The park, which is the 15th of New Town, is spread over 60,000sq ft, and offers a pictorial overview of Netaji’s life through 20 sidelit panels that come aglow after sunset.
Smart Street opens: A 400m stretch in front of New Town Mela Ground was opened on January 26 flaunting all the features that make New Town a smart city. This Smart Street has an electric vehicle charging station, parking sensors that display on an electronic board how many parking spaces are still free, solar benches that have panels on their roofs to light up lamps in the evenings etc. The adjoining Smart Plaza, with toilet and seating facilities, is also opened.
Vaccination starts: Covid jabs in Salt Lake began by inoculating 125 people on January 16. In the initial phase, only healthcare and frontline workers were to get jabbed and the first two centres to start were Bidhannagar Subdivisional Hospital and the urban primary health centre in Duttabad.
February
New Town gets ration counter- An extension counter of a fair price shop opened on the ground floor of the old electricity office in AI Block near Tank 3 in Action Area 1 on February 2. Before this the nearest ration shop was 2km away in Rajarhat.
New police commissioner- Supratim Sarkar joined as the new police commissioner of Bidhannagar Commissionerate. He took over from Mukesh Kumar. Sarkar has previously held the post of additional CP-II in Calcutta Police and served as the North 24-Parganas superintendent of police.
New Town fire brigade opens: The first fire station of New Town was inaugurated on February 5. The station has come up nine years after its foundation stone was laid on a two-acre plot behind Axis Mall. Till then, New Town and Rajarhat had to depend on the Sector V and Dum Dum fire stations. The number to alert the New Town fire station is 7605896231.
March
CNG pump opens: A Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) pump opened behind Axis Mall on March 22. Champion Hub, the gas station that so far dispensed only petrol and diesel, started off by catering to three to four cars a day.
April
E-cycles launched: App-based e-bikes were launched in New Town on April 7. The cycles are battery-powered bikes and can run 60km on a single charge. They can be picked up by commuters from 20 docking stations around the township. They are locked and unlocked on payment through the Chartered Bike app, that already operates cycles in the township.
Amit Shah and Mamata Banerjee in Salt Lake: In the run-up to the Assembly elections, Salt Lake hosted two political bigwigs on the same day — April 13. In the afternoon, home minister Amit Shah took stage at a BJP meeting at FD Park and in the evening chief minister Mamata Banerjee addressed Trinamul supporters at BF Park.
Election day: The twin townships went to vote on April 17. Despite fears of Covid, polling percentages added up to 66.47 per cent in the Bidhannagar area and 81.15 per cent in Rajarhat-New Town.
Philately park opens: A philately park is completed inside the CC Block post office complex on April 22. Spread over about 1,200sq ft, the park has been decorated with replicas of 80-85 stamps, mostly on nature and birds. There is also a mini bridge over a waterbody, a birdhouse and a traditional red mail box.
May
MLA returns: Sujit Bose of Trinamul Congress returned for another term as MLA after results were declared on May 2. He won the Assembly seat by a margin of 7,997 votes over BJP’s Sabyyasachi Dutta and in Salt Lake led by 47 votes.
New ward co-ordinators: The corporation appointed new ward co-ordinators in wards 31, 34 and 41, where former councillors Sabyasachi Dutta, Devasish Jana and Anindya Chattopadhyay respectively had switched to the BJP. The new names were Supriyo Chakraborty for Ward 31, Ranjan Poddar for Ward 34 and Ratna Bhaumik for Ward 41.
June
Punjab gangsters gunned down in New Town: A Bengal police team gunned down two gangsters wanted in Punjab during a raid in an apartment in Sukhobrishti housing complex on June 9. The two men were later identified as Jaipal Bhullar and Jaspreet Singh alias Jassi Kharar, both of whom had bounties on their heads in Punjab. Over 40 personnel from the Bengal special task force and the State Striking Force were involved in the operation.
July
Meal for Rs 5: New Town got a Ma Canteen from June 2. The canteen at the NKDA Market opposite Greenwood Park serves an egg curry, potato dish, dal and rice for Rs 5. Those wanting a meal here at lunch time must collect a token between 9 and 10am. Urban development minister Chandrima Bhattacharya inaugurated the service by serving the first customer.
Centenarian citizen: Mihir Kumar Chatterjee, a resident of EC Block, turns 100 on June 6. Neighbours, alumni associations and well-wishers pour in for three days to wish the former PWD housing commissioner, who recites verses from Tagore and the Bhagwad Gita in return.
New meditation centre: Gautam Buddha Meditation Centre was inaugurated in CJ Park on July 4. Built using Krishna Chakraborty's councillor's fund, while she was in office, the 2,000sq ft centre has a hall, toilet and changing room. It also has paintings and statues of the Buddha.
Jyoti Basu research centre: Land got allotted for a research facility named after the former chief minister and the signboard of the same was unveiled on July 8, his 108th birth anniversary. The five-acre space in Action Area IIA will undertake research on social issues and also house an exhibition, a museum seminar hall etc.
August
Free government daycare centre opened: A creche for children of informal sector workers like domestic helps and drivers was opened at AD Block near Greenwood Park on August 11. Named Fuljhuri, the centre is for children aged six months to six years. The kids can stay there from 9 to 5pm, Monday to Saturday, and along with pre-school education they are served meals.
Working pod opened: The first Happy Works pod opened opposite Coal Bhavan in New Town on August 13. The bright yellow single-storeyed structure is a co-working space where those seeking office affordable space can hire a seat and work. Two more pods are opened in November opposite the Seven Wonders section of Eco Park and next to Sankalpa 2.
September
Minister Firhad Hakim and Hidco MD Debashis Sen at the subway inauguration
Subway at Biswa Bangla gate: The busy crossing at New Town's Biswa Bangla Gate got its first underpass on September 3. The 240-ft subway, with two-way escalators, connected pedestrians from Rabindra Tirtha to Smart Plaza. The second leg of the pedestrian subway would open on November 26, connecting the Biswa Bangla Gate ticket counter side to the Tata Medical Center side. Work is underway on two other sides.
New Town inundated: Torrential rains that lashed the city during Cyclone Yaas left major portions of New Town flooded. With the Bagjola Canal breaching its banks, several housing complexes like Sukhobrishti had water inside their campus for days on end and even roads caved in.
October
Geriatric clinic in FE Block: On October 2 a clinic opened at their community centre with focus on geriatric care. Named Arogya Health and Wellness Centre, it operates thrice a week and is open to residents of neighbouring blocks too.
Lake Town subway opened: An underpass is inaugurated at Lake Town to help pedestrians cross VIP Road. It is inaugurated on Mahalaya by minister and MLA Sujit Bose.
Sreebhumi draws huge crowds in Covid year: Despite the fear of infection, lakhs of pandal-hoppers thronged the Burj Khalifa replica at Sreebhumi Sporting Club for Durga puja. In stampede-like situations, three people had to be hopsitalised, pilots complained about the light show from the pandal, which was later discontinued and traffic came to such a halt that police had to stop entry for visitors several times.
November
Vaccination at home starts: The New Town authorities start vaccination of bed-ridden senior citizens at home after a meeting on November 9. The facility is also offered to challenged or injured individuals or those suffering from serious medical conditions. Residents need to send email to covid19@nkda.in to seek vaccination at home.
Schools reopen: Government schools in Salt Lake, like in the rest of West Bengal, are thrown open for students of classes IX to XII from November 16.
Community centre for New Town: Action Area 1 gets a community centre on November 23. This is the first of three centres planned for each of the three action areas of New Town. Located near Biswa Bangla Gate, the G+2 building is of about 29,000 sq ft with two banquet halls, rooms, roof-top space, coffee shop, open air theatre, lawn and exhibition rooms.
December
Critical Care Unit opened: The CCU of Bidhannagar Subdivisional Hospital in DD Block is opened to the public on December 8. The same had been inaugurated by chief minister Mamata Banerjee in February but was opened at the end of the year after sprucing up. The unit opens up six beds with provision for four more and two private cabins to be opened a couple of months.
Animal crematory started: The South Dum Dum Municipality animal crematorium, situated in Pramodnagar in Dum Dum, is declared open from December 14. The electric crematorium was earlier inaugurated on December 2, 2020, but could not be made operational due to technical glitches, the authorities said. The first four carcasses came on December 15. The charge is Rs 2,500 per cremation. But if street dogs or any other animal that has died on the street is brought, then the service is free.
Healthcare at home by neighbours: Elita Garden Vista in Action Area III has launched a service called the Senior Citizens Wellness Programme which should benefit elderly residents of the housing complex. Individual medical information have been collected and a male nurse has started visiting them to check their vital parameters on a weekly basis. The data will be checked by doctors in the complex.
New park in CK Block: The BR Ambedkar Park opens in CK Block on November 14 after a dumping ground near Tank 9 in cleaned and beautified. The civic authorities have restricted the age limit of children who use the play equipment installed there to 10 years.
In your view, what is the most significant event of 2021 in our neighbourhood? Write in to saltlake@abp.in