Exactly. It's not like modern, air-conditioned trams were only just invented yesterday. And isn't India richer than the UK, France, or Italy? Why won't they have the budget to upgrade it to modern standards?
As for the nostalgia and historical heritage concerns. The authorities are planning to preserve one line to serve as a heritage line. So its not like it's gonna be gone for good. Obviously, this still didn't satisfy a number of Indians.
Indians have a strange selection for nostalgia. One the one hand, they retain nostalgia for the British-built buildings and infrastructure. But on the other hand, they were enthusiastic to tear down the centuries-old Babri Masjid, and replace it with the Ram Mandir Hindu temple.
Reading the article, sounds like the government is just being cheap. They are clearly trying to destroy the service by reducing the number of trams, making it unreliable. This is similar to what GM, Firestone, and oil companies did in the 40's and 50's to make cars the dominant form of transportation.
However, while the main motivation for GM and those companies was obviously profit, the Kolkata government just seems to be lazy.
