Don’t give DMRC work outside Delhi: Dikshit to Antony

September 2, 2013

PTI |

NEW DELHI: Insisting that the huge Delhi Metro network needed proper upkeep, chief minister Sheila Dikshit has written to defence minister A K Antony seeking that DMRC not be given work outside the capital at present.

Dikshit had shot off a letter to Antony, who heads the group of ministers (GoM) on Mass Rapid Transit System, after media reports regarding announcements made by Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments related to expansion of Metro network in these states upset her, official sources told .

In her letter to Antony, Dikshit is learnt to have said that the announcements were made without the approval of the GoM and without consulting her government, which has a 50 per cent share in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.

She also said Phase I of Delhi Metro was completed about a decade ago and its condition was deteriorating and in need of attention for maintenance and repair, according to sources.

Dikshit also pointed out that the DMRC was already working on the demanding task of executing Phase III of the Metro’s expansion in the capital, along with preparing a Detailed Project Report for Phase IV, they said.

She wrote that a monorail project in the capital will also be entrusted to the DMRC once preliminary studies are done.

In the letter written last month, the chief minister has told Antony that maintaining the huge infrastructure of the Delhi Metro is a demanding task and diverting its resources to neighbouring towns may adversely affect its functioning and maintenance in the capital, they said.

Dikshit has also asked Antony to advise the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana not to make announcements related to expansion of DMRC network in these states without consulting her government, they said.

 

Source-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation awarded IMS certification for operation, maintenance

September 2, 2013

PTI|

 

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation(DMRC) has been awarded Integrated Management System certification which is in accordance with international standards.

The certification and audit body from KBS Certifications Services assessed the IMS in Delhi Metro and found it to be in accordance with the requirements of the standards of International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) and the International Occupation Health and Safety Assessment (OHASAS) series.

“It has been found that DMRC is in accordance with the ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004 & OHSAS 18001:2007 standards,” a DMRC spokesperson said.

The scope of this certification entails Operation & Maintenance of Line 2 comprising 34 Metro Stations from Jahangirpuri – HUDA City Centre Metro corridor.

This also includes the Khyber Pass and Sultanpur depots catering to the operational and maintenance requirements of the Rolling Stock (Metro Trains) on the line.

ISO certification implies fulfilment of Quality Management System (QMS) in achieving customer satisfaction for passenger service while OHSAS demonstrates the conscious determination of the organisation to safeguard its employees and the environment from harmful incidents and potential hazards within an organisation.

Earlier this year, the O&M Wing of Delhi Metro had adopted ISO 50001-2011 Energy Management System (EnMS) which provided a framework for developing strategies that help organisations to effectively manage their energy use.

 

 

Source-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation likely to clear UP, Haryana plans

September 2, 2013

Dipak Kumar Dash, TNN |

 

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) board is likely to clear extension of two Metro lines -one in Noida and another in Faridabad – on Friday. Government sources said extensions of the Metro line from Noida City Center to Sector 62 and YMCA Chowk in Faridabad to Ballabhgarh have been included in the board’s agenda.The two projects are on the table a few weeks after Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit objected to DMRC taking up new projects outside the national capital claiming that the agency has a lot of work to finish within the city.

Early this week, a sub-committee had cleared both the Noida and Faridabad projects. “Once the board clears them, work will start. Extension of Metro is essential for the entire NCR. Centre has already made this clear,” a Union urban development ministry official said.

Though DMRC officials did not divulge estimated costs of the two projects, ministry sources said in these cases, 80% of the investment will come from state governments – Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

The 6.7km Noida City Centre-Sector 62 link would be completely elevated. The route will have six stations at sectors 34, 52, 59, 61, 62 and Electronic City (NH-24, Ghaziabad border).

The authority had also proposed another extension route – 3.9km stretch between Kalindi Kunj and Botanical Garden having two stations.

In the case of Faridabad, Haryana has pushed for extension of the Metro track by 3.2km from YMCA Chowk to Ballabhgarh for better connectivity. At present, the work on 14km Badarpur-YMCA Chowk stretch is on and it is likely to be operational by 2016 when Delhi Metro’s Phase-III will be completed.

“Our endeavour has been to improve connectivity of our cities with Delhi for greater economic activity. Smart and seamless connectivity pushes development across the region, which is our focus of taking up the case for extending Metro link to Ballabhgarh,” said Haryana CM’s son Deepender Singh Hooda, who is also the MP from Rohtak.

 

Metro Phase III to go over rail tracks, flyover

September 2, 2013

TNN |

NEW DELHI: DMRC, in Phase III, will attempt to construct over a railway line as well as two loops of a flyover. The elevated corridor (or viaduct) of the under-construction Janakpuri West-Botanical Garden section of Delhi Metro will pass over the Delhi-Mumbai railway tracks as well as the Modi Mill flyover. The flyover is located between the turning to Okhla Phase III and Ishwar Nagar Metro stations.The challenge, says Delhi Metro spokesman Anuj Dayal, is the acute lack of space for construction at this location. “Between these two Metro stations, which will be located about 1km from each other, our engineers are going to encounter two major construction-related challenges: crossing the busy Delhi-Mumbai railway corridor and the two important loops of the Modi Mill flyover,” said Dayal.

The DMRC is planning to install a steel bridge to cross the railway corridor, which has five tracks. “The installation of a steel bridge will cause minimal disruption to the railway operations below. This bridge will cross the tracks at a height of about 17m,” said Dayal, adding that the Delhi Metro is still awaiting permissions for starting the construction over the railway lines.

After crossing the rail tracks, the viaduct will pass over two loops of the Modi Mill flyover which lead to the two sides of the Mathura Road below — towards Ashram and Badarpur. “The construction work over both these crucial loops will be carried out without causing any disruption to the traffic below,” said Dayal. While the length of the span crossing over the first loop towards Ashram will be 34m, the length over the second loop towards Badarpur will be 37m.

“The construction of this portion of the viaduct has already started. This stretch of the viaduct — over the two loops of the Modi Mill flyover — is expected to be completed by the end of October,” Dayal added.

Cos may shy away from Delhi-Jaipur Eway if land not acquired

August 7, 2013

Press Trust of India  |   

Unless a major portion of the land is handed over, financial institutions could shy away from funding the project

Unless a major portion of the land is handed over in the construction of the proposed Delhi- Jaipur expressway, financial institutions could shy away from funding the project, Road Minister Oscar Fernandes has said.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) plan to build an expressway, at an estimated cost of Rs 14,000 crore, to the Pink City with the aim of decongesting the journey.

“Delhi-Jaipur Expressway — the work on this project is on, but unless 60% of the land is not handed over, the work cannot start because the financial institution will not lend money,” Fernandes told PTI.

However, the Minister did not elaborate on the matter any further.

He said, “The work is in progress on some stretches but at some places land acquisition is required and on those stretches it cannot be undertaken unless land is acquired.”

The starting point in Delhi for the expressway, in all probability, would be the Indira Gandhi International Airport.

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, in 2006-07, planned to construct 10 expressways but progress could be made only in two, namely Delhi-Jaipur and Delhi-Chandigarh.

However, the Delhi to Chandigarh expressway may now be re-aligned from Delhi to Ludhiana with a link to Chandigarh.

This has been proposed mainly to cater to the heavy traffic on the Delhi-Ludhiana National Highway.

The government had accorded approval for building 1,000 km of expressways in the country in October, 2011.

The government will build seven expressways under the flagship highways building programme NHDP (National Highway Development Programme) VI.

The remaining five projects are – 400 km Vadodara-Mumbai, 66 km Delhi-Meerut, Delhi-Agra, 277 km Bangalore-Chennai and 334 km Kolkata-Dhanbad.

 

http://www.business-standard.com

Delhi Metro second largest in southeast Asia in ridership

July 31, 2013

New Delhi: Delhi Metro is now the second largest metro service in southeast Asia in terms of the passenger load it carries, next only to Hong Kong, its chief said Monday.The metro service, which started in 2002, has surpassed Singapore and Taipei metros in per day average ridership, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) chief Mangu Singh said.

“In last six months, the average per day ridership of Delhi metro has risen to 2.01 million per day,” he said.

The highest ridership was recorded on July 1, at a massive 2.36 million on the 190-km long metro line.

According to figures provided by DMRC, the per day average ridership was 18 lakh in the first six months of 2012. It increased to 19.61 lakh per day in the second half of the year.

Singapore had a per day average ridership of 1.94 million in 2012 on its 148.9 km-long network, while Taipei had an average ridership of 1.71 million per day in May 2013. The length of its network is 115.6 km.

Hong Kong metro, meanwhile, had an average ridership of 4 million per day in 2012 on its 115.6 km-long line.

IANS

Source- http://zeenews.india.com

Forgot something in Delhi Metro? Call helpline

July 31, 2013

 

New Delhi: With lost credit cards, driving licences, clothes and lunch boxes piling up in their store rooms, Delhi Metro has now set up a new helpline so that people can inquire about things lost-and-found, an official said on Friday.

“Commuters can call the new mobile number 8527405555 to enquire about the belongings lost while travelling in the Delhi Metro,” the official said.The enquiries on this number can be made from 10:00 am to 5 pm daily, except Sundays.

Apart from this new mobile helpline number, the Lost and Found Office at Kashmere Gate Metro station already has another number 011-23860837, where passengers can enquire about lost belongings.

The passengers can also check the website, www.delhimetrorail.com, which offers a brief description of articles lost-and-found.

“The passenger can approach the respective Metro station within 24 hours of its display on the website to claim the item. After 24 hours, it is moved to the Lost and Found Office at Kashmere Gate station,” the statement said.

According to Metro officials, about 10 items are lost and found on Delhi Metro at its 139 station-network every day.

Delhi Metro, the city’s lifeline, ferries nearly two million passengers on weekdays and makes over 2,800 trips daily.

IANS

Source-http://zeenews.india.com

 

New Metro stations to allow pedestrians to cross busy roads

June 18, 2013

 

htreporters, Hindustan Times

To ensure pedestrians have more facilities to cross busy arterial roads, the public works department (PWD) has asked the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to provide passage to pedestrians through the unpaid area in all stations in phase 3 and phase 4 expansions.

 PWD officials said they had written to DMRC earlier this month and held a meeting with its officials. “The number of vehicles is growing at a steady pace and it gets difficult for pedestrians to cross the busy streets. Instead of constructing subways or pedestrian bridges every couple of kilometres, it is better if a passage is provided to them through Metro stations,” said a senior PWD official. 

The PWD official said they had asked the Delhi Metro to make such a provision at its upcoming stations along Ring Road and Outer Ring Road. Delhi Metro will construct about 230km Metro network in the next few years. Two of its longest lines being constructed under phase 3 — Mukundpur to Yamuna Vihar and Janakpuri to Botanical garden (Noida) — are coming up along Ring Road and Outer Ring Road, respectively.  Delhi Metro officials said they were making conscious efforts to provide smooth passage to pedestrians through its stations wherever possible. “The stations built in phase 1 do not have this facility but all stations, whether elevated or underground, built in phase 2 provide passage to pedestrians,” a DMRC spokesperson said.

While stations between Rajiv Chowk and Dwarka do not allow pedestrians to use the Metro stations to cross busy Patel Road or Najafgarh Road, all stations in Noida and Gurgaon can be used to cross the roads. ”In phase 3 and phase 4 also, we will make provisions for pedestrians to cross through the unpaid area,” the spokesperson said.

Source-http://www.hindustantimes.com

DND repair from June 8 to affect traffic in Noida, Delhi

June 5, 2013

Aniruddha Ghosal, TNN |

NOIDA: Traffic on the DND flyway, the most vital link between Delhi and Noida, will slow down from June 8 due to its repair. The work is expected to last at least five weeks, depending on the onset of monsoon in the region, and has been divided into five stages, each focusing on a different part of the route.

Traffic police officials said it would be unrealistic to expect no traffic snarls. “Traffic will definitely be slow on the DND, especially during peak hours, affecting movement across Delhi and Noida. Almost 1 lakh vehicles use DND daily,” said a senior traffic police officer.

The work will resurface the entire flyway barring the Mayur Vihar link road which had already been repaired. After correcting the cracks, a layer of glass fabric will be applied on the road and after this a layer of bituminous concrete will be laid.

“Existing small cracks will be filled up while the larger cracks will be excavated and corrected. The glass fabric will prevent further cracks and reverse osmosis, the primary cause of cracks,” said Anwar Abbasi, spokesperson, Noida Toll Booth Company Limited.

Officials claimed that measures had been taken to help commuters. “We have hired an agency for traffic management and they will, along with our staff, ensure that traffic flow isn’t hampered. The work will take place throughout the day to ensure speedy completion of the project. During summer holidays, there’s also a 30% decline in vehicular movement,” said Abbasi.

The repair, which is being done after consultation with the Central Road Research Institute, has been divided into four 1.5km segments.

In the first phase, the stretch between Delhi and Noida will be repaired. The second stage will see simultaneous repairs of the Sarai Kale Khan ramp and the entry point to the DND from Maharani Bagh. In the third phase, the Yamuna Bridge-toll plaza stretch will be worked upon. In the fourth stage, the toll plaza-Noida corridor will be worked upon and finally repair will be done on the Yamuna bridge itself. Each stage will take approximately a week to finish.

Source-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

 

Tariff jolt may hike Delhi Metro fare

June 5, 2013

Rumu Banerjee, TNN |

NEW DELHI: Commuting by Delhi Metro could get costlier if a proposal to hike the power tariff for Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is accepted. The proposal, which is still being examined by Delhi Regulatory Commission(DERC), comes after the discoms sought a hike in tariff. Delhi Metro, which made a case to DERC earlier last month, has clearly said in its presentation that any further increase in tariff cannot be absorbed by DMRC without an increase in the fare which, it admits, will burden commuters.

At present, Delhi Metro pays Rs 6.05 per unit, besides “fixed” charges. As part of the “time of day” (TOD) metering, DMRC also pays a higher tariff for using power at certain hours of the day, which are usually the peak hours.

Says Sharat Sharma, director (operations), at Delhi Metro: “The maximum energy usage by Delhi Metro is during the hours defined as peak by the discoms. The TOD tariff has resulted in an additional burden. Since Delhi Metro is a passenger service, we cannot curtail energy usage during peak commuter travelling hours.” According to Sharma, energy consumption in the past two years has been 41.34 per cent but the expenditure on power has gone up by 140 per cent during that time. “A further power tariff hike will have a detrimental impact on our operational costs. Already, power accounts for 40 per cent of our operational costs. If this goes up further, we will have to cut down on other services,” said Sharma.

Last year, DMRC had asked the Centre for a hike in fares, citing increasing operational costs. However, the committee on fare hike is yet to be set up. If a fare hike is not implemented now, Delhi Metro could be forced to look at a subsidy from the government to pay back its loans, say officials.

“The loan from JICA ( Japan International Cooperation Agency) is paid from the operational revenue collected by Delhi Metro at present. If this goes down, then subsidies would have to be considered to bail out Delhi Metro,” admits Sharma.

Adding to the DMRC’s woes is the talk of a reliability charge by the discoms. While the hikes proposed range from 1.61-20 per cent, the reliability charge is for supplying uninterrupted power, according to the proposal. This, says Delhi Metro, would be blatantly unfair.

“Reliability is a factor introduced through our systems which have been put in place. The fact is that in the financial year 2012-13, there were numerous instances of tripping, which resulted in a loss of power for 36 hours,” says Sharma. Interestingly, compared to UP and Haryana, Delhi power unit costs the most. Per unit prices in the neighbouring states are Rs 5 and Rs 5.60 per unit, respectively.

Source-http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

 

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