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About Delhi Metro

Delhi Metro, popular public transport has been prominent in ushering novel era in the subject of mass urban transportation of our country India. The contemporary and swanky metro system has introduced eco-friendly, air conditioned and comfortable services for the first time in India which has redefined the mass public transportation picture not just in Delhi or NCR but in whole India.

DMRC has constructed a huge network of 193 kilometers in its record line and today it stands apart as shining example of how a massive technically complicated infrastructure project got accomplished ahead of its set time and in set budget which was estimated by a government agency.

DMRC – Delhi Metro Rail Corporation got registered under the Companies Act of 1956 on 3rd May 1995 with equal equity partnership of the GNCTD – Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi and the Central Government for implementation of the dream related to construction and functioning of world class, impeccable and outstanding mass rapid transport system.

Delhi Metro opened its 1st gateway amid Tis Hazari and Shahdra in December 2002. Eventually the 1st phase of construction with length of 65 kilometres of metro rail line was finished in 2 years and nine months before its schedule in 2005. Since that time, DMRC has even accomplished the construction of one other metro corridor of route length 125 kms under the 2nd phase in just 4.5 years.

At present the network of Delhi metro includes 193 operational kilometres together with 141 stations excluding 6 stations located on Airport Express Line. This network now crosses the limitations of Delhi and reaches Ghaziabad and Noida in Uttar Pradesh as well as Gurgaon in Haryana. Metro line of Airport express link between the city of New Delhi and Indira Gandhi International Airport has now led Delhi to impeccable league of global cities that have outstanding rapid rail network between different cities and airport.

DMRC at present has 216 trains in sets of 8, 6 and 4 coaches. There are more than 100 trains that have 7 coaches and over 60 metro trains that have 8 coaches which are under operation.

Delhi Metro has even contributed stupendously on environmental front. It has become the 1st ever rail project of the world which claims carbon credit for reformative braking. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has been accredited by UN (United Nations) as 1st metro rail in entire world for getting carbon credits for cutting down the emission of greenhouse gas and it has even assisted in cutting down the pollution level of Delhi by 6.3 lakh tonnes each year, helping significantly in reducing global warming.

Delhi metro has even built a roof top solar power plant at Dwarka Sector twenty one metro station. This power plant produces 500kWp power. More similar kinds of plants are expected at other metro stations, residential spaces and parking areas. All metro stations under phase 3 will have design of green building. In 3rd phase of Delhi Metro, DMRC has set process of constructing 140 kms of metro rail lines that shall weave a network of metro gateways together with Delhi’s ring road apart from connecting it with locations. Metro services shall even touch Bahadurgarh and Faridabad for 1st time.  Besides offering Delhites a convenient public transport system, the metro is even contributing vitally towards the pollution control of Delhi and helping in cutting down  vehicular congestion on roads. As per a study held by Central Road Research Institute in year 2011, Delhi Metro helps in cutting down 1.17 lakh of vehicles from Delhi streets.

History

Background

The concept of swift and mass transit for New Delhi came up from a travel and traffic attribute study which was held out in Delhi in 1969. For the next upcoming years, different official committees by various government departments were set up to examine the issues linked to government jurisdiction, route alignment and technology. In the year 1984, the Delhi Development Authority together with Urban Arts Commission came up with plan for constructing multi modal public transport system which involved constructing 3 underground mass swift transit gateways together with augmenting Delhi’s already existing suburban railways and road transport web.

While the extensive technical studies together with fund raising for this project were in progress, Delhi expanded vitally leading to a twofold rise in its populace and 5 fold rise in figure of vehicles amid the years 1981 and 1998. Eventually the population soared while traffic congested. Large number of people opted for public and private transport while the existing bus service failed to bear the load. A try at privatising the public transport – bus was made in 1992, but this just led to increase in problem with less experienced operators, non-reliable services, overcrowded buses, reckless driving, speeding and inexperienced drivers together with long waiting times. To improve the situation, the government of Delhi and India came together to set up Delhi Metro Rail Corporation on third of May 1995. The managing director of this commission was E.Sreedharan while he further handed this charge to Shri Mangu Singh in December 2011.

Construction

The physical construction work on this Delhi Metro project started in October 1998. Post the existing problems faced by Kolkata metro, which was too much delayed and was 12 times over the budget owing to bureaucratic delays, technical problems and political meddling, Delhi metro is a unique purpose organization established with great autonomy and authority for executing this massive project which involved many technical complexities. It had to face different difficulties of urban environment and had less time frame. Delhi metro rail corporation was given complete powers to recruit people, decide and finalise on the tenders while have regulation on funds. The Delhi metro then even consulted MRTC of Hong Kong on swift transit operation and other construction techniques. Due to this the construction started smoothly leaving one main disagreement in year 2000, where the railways ministry pushed the entire system to use a broad gauge rather than the standard gauge which was preferred by Delhi Metro.

Inaugural of first metro line was done by then PM of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee on December 24th 2002 and therefore it became the 2nd underground swift transit system of India post the metro in Kolkata. The 1st phase of this project got completed in 2006 in planned budget and ahead of its schedule by 3 years. This is truly an accomplishment mentioned as nothing short of miracle in Business Week.

Construction Accidents

By October 19th, 2008 a pilot launcher and segment of overhead blue metro line extension which was under construction in Laxmi Nagar region, located in East Delhi collapsed and dropped down on passing vehicles beneath. The workers were using crane for lifting 400 tonnes of concrete span of a bridge when this launcher collapsed together with thirty four m long span of bridge. This dropped on a blue line bus thereby taking life of the driver and a labour.

On July 12th, 2009, a segment of the bridge broke while it was made to stand erect at Zamrudpur which is on Central Secretariat – Badarpur gateway near the east of Kailash. 15 people were injured while 6 died during this accident. The other day 13th July 2009, a crane which was removing debris collapsed and due to the pin bowling influence another two crane which were nearby also collapsed causing injury to 6 people. On July 22nd, 2009, a worker at Ashok Park Metro Station was reported to be killed when large steel beam fell on him. Nearly 100 people of which 93 were workers have died ever since the construction on metro started in 1998.

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