DMRC ready, awaiting govt’s nod for resumption of services

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on Tuesday claimed that it is ready for the resumption of services and would require a minimal time to get going after the green signal from the government.

The metro services were suspended on March 22 to combat the spread of Covid-19. Since then, it has kept all the safety measures in place but the Centre has not allowed it to recommence its services. It is, however, likely to resume in 'Unlock 4.0' in a phased manner and with extensive restrictions.

Recently, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that metro services should be resumed in a phased manner on an experimental basis as the coronavirus situation has improved in the national capital.

The challenges , however, will be overcrowding on the platforms, long queues, frisking and seating arrangements in the metro.

"All the arrangements are in place. We would require two days' time to sanitize stations as they have been closed from long, set up the system, set staff and train operators on duty," a top ranking DMRC official told IANS.

A batch of trains are stranded in the hub depot and would require dusting, stations would also require thorough cleaning, he said, adding that the basic preparations will be done in two days after the go ahead.

"Besides the logistics planning, precautionary measures like social distancing, ground marking will also be in place. Whether or not frequency of the trains will be increased will depend on government's guidelines," the DMRC added.

All the measures will be in place to combat the spread of the virus and efforts will be made to make travel safe for the passengers, it said.

Recently, DMRC Managing Director Mangu Singh had inspected the Rajiv Chowk metro station to check the functioning of the operational systems and maintenance activities, fuelling speculation that the services will resume soon.