look news india
Amid the massive protest by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) and security vigil at Jantar Mantar in the national capital Delhi on Saturday, October 10, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has given a big relief to lakhs of daily commuters. After an emergency security review meeting held in the morning with Delhi Police and central security agencies, DMRC has modified its previous decision of keeping the metro stations closed. According to the new official advisory, now only 45 sensitive metro stations will remain completely or partially closed instead of 57 stations announced earlier. On the advice of Delhi Police, permission has been given to reopen 12 important interchanges and connecting stations, due to which the problems of common citizens, working people and travelers from outside who came out of their homes for their important work, examinations, hospitals and travel on weekends have been reduced to a great extent.
According to the latest bulletin issued by DMRC, after assessment of the morning situation and adequate deployment of security forces, the 12 stations which have been removed from the closed list include many busy connectivity points. The opening of these stations, connecting the outskirts of Lutyens’ Delhi and the Ring Road, will free commuters from walking long distances or getting stuck in traffic jams on the roads. However, DMRC has clarified that due to security reasons, additional personnel of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and Delhi Police will be deployed at these open stations also. Intensive manual and electronic metal detector checking of bags and identity cards of every passenger entering the station premises is being done, so that no unruly element or protestor without permission can move towards the restricted area through the metro network.
Under the revised order, restrictions are still in place at 45 major stations around Central Delhi, Sansad Marg, Duty Path and Lutyens Zone. These include the most sensitive Yellow Line and Violet Line stations:
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Yellow Line: Exits have been completely restricted at select gates of Central Secretariat, Patel Chowk, Udyog Bhawan, Lok Kalyan Marg and Rajiv Chowk.
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Violet & Blue Line: Station gates have been kept closed for the general public in areas like Mandi House, Janpath, Barakhamba Road, ITO and Delhi Gate.
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Interchange facility restored: DMRC has assured passengers that metro interchange facilities at major junctions like Rajiv Chowk, Central Secretariat and Mandi House are functioning normally. Passengers can continue their onward journey by changing trains, but they will not be allowed to exit these stations.
This amendment has proved to be the biggest relief for the passengers going to New Delhi Railway Station, Old Delhi Railway Station, Hazrat Nizamuddin and IGI Airport. It had become almost impossible to reach the station by road due to heavy barricades and diversions imposed by the traffic police at more than 30 intersections on the roads of Central Delhi. In such a situation, the smooth operation of the Airport Express Line and the functioning of the metro gates connected to the railway stations has become the only lifeline for the passengers. DMRC has appealed to the passengers to plan their journey only by checking the live status on the metro’s official mobile app ‘DMRC Momentum 2.0’ and official social media handle (@OfficialDMRC) to avoid any confusion.
Metro services still remain the safest option for lakhs of passengers entering Delhi from Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and Gurugram and Faridabad in Haryana, as there is a kilometer-long traffic jam on the road due to intensive police checking at Chilla, Ghazipur, Kalindi Kunj, Singhu and Badarpur borders. Delhi Police and DMRC have reiterated that the law and order situation is completely under control and as the ground situation normalizes in the afternoon, the remaining 45 stations will also be opened for normal operations in a phased manner. Passengers have been requested not to create unnecessary crowd at stations, cooperate with CISF personnel in security checks and maintain peace.