Delhi Metro fast on way to be one of world’s largest networks

By India News Steam Staff
July 11, 2018
New Delhi: The Delhi Metro rail will be joining the elite club of world’s largest metro networks with the Phase III slated to be completed in six months time and the Noida-Greater Noida line, adding yet another 30 km, becoming operational soon.

At present the total length of the Metro Phase I, II and III is 350.627 km, and after the 30 km of Noida-Greater Noida line are added, it will be a 383.90 km-long line, very close to 400 plus km of London metro.

Besides, a little over 100 Km will be added in the fourth phase, which, however, is yet to get government approval. This phase is caught in the tussle between the Central and the AAP governemnt of Delhi. In this phase the main areas of the city which would be connected by Metro are: Rithala-Bawana-Narela, Janakpuri West-Rk Ashram, Mukundpur-Maujpur, Aerocity-Tughlakabad, and Lajpat Nagar-Saket G Block.

The Metro has revolutionised the commuter behaviour and the city transport. However, there are concerns over the last year’s steep cent hike in metro fare, which has made it no longer the most preferred mode of commuting by the commonman.

And here is the dilemma. To maintain Metro as state of the art mode of transport, its operating costs have to be met, and hence the hike in fares, the government argues, whereas the opponents of the hike answer back by saying that the resulting steep drop in Metro foot fall would negate the revenue generated by the increase in the cost of commuting.

Executive Director of the Delhi metro Corporate Communication Anuj Dayal says that the Delhi Metro among the few world metros which are financially viable, as it is not enjoying subsidy of any kind. ”It was making operating profit,” he said, while adding that ”net profit was difficult.”

On the opposition to the fare hike, he said “The fares of the Delhi Metro are revised by a Fare Fixation Committee appointed by the government. The fare slabs are not decided by DMRC on its own. The fares of Delhi Metro were revised in 2017 after a gap of nine years. Slight reduction in ridership after fare revisions is a global phenomenon and happens in all transport systems of this nature. The ridership of the Delhi Metro is already recovering now after an initial decrease.”

He said that the Delhi Metro was the first metro rail and rail-based system in the world to get ”carbon credits” for reducing greenhouse emissions. Mr Dayal said 20 per cent cent of the Metro revenue comes from non-operational activities like property development-shopping malls, IT parks, bill boards.

The continued surge in Delhi’s population, resulting number of private petrol, diesel transport vehicles had given rise to the idea of having electric metro rail for the city way back in late 1060s. However, it was in 1984 that concrete planning for the metro started, with the Delhi Development Authority and Urban Arts Commission coming up with a proposal for developing a multi-modal transport system in the city.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) was registered on 3rd May 1995 under the Companies Act, 1956 with equal equity participation of the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and the Central Government

The DMRC opened its first corridor between Shahdara and Tis Hazari on 25th December, 2002.

Dayal said that the Delhi Metro was the first metro rail and rail-based system in the world to get ”carbon credits” for reducing greenhouse emissions.

He said the best of international technologies were being used for Metro, and construction has been done with least disturbance to Delhiites. Dayal also said that the Delhi metro has been designed and is operated in a manner friendly to the physically challenged.