Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee Saturday inaugurated an automobile hub at Shalimar in Kolkata's twin district Howrah.

'The first automobile hub has been opened up in record time and we also have plans to set up nine similar hubs in different parts of the country. These automobile hubs will be set up at places like Ernakulam, Nasik and Pune,' Banerjee said while addressing the gathering at Shalimar, about 10 km from here.

During the occasion, she also flagged off two new trains through remote control - the Howrah-Gandhidham weekly express and Kolkata-Amritsar bi-weekly express.

As part of Banerjee's rapid industrialisation drive, the first phase of the auto-hub was inaugurated within 100 days of the foundation stone being laid at Shalimar.

Initially 320 vehicles will be accommodated and there is provision for another 320 in the second phase.