New Delhi: In a first-of-its-kind exercise, the Delhi Metro has successfully completed the mid-life refurbishment work including installation of CCTV cameras, fire detection system, mobile charging facility and LCD based dynamic route maps in the first 10 train sets were introduced in the first phase.
A total of 70 trains were procured in the first phase between 2002 and 2007 and have completed 14 to 19 years of their total life span of 30 years. Now they are gradually being renewed and modified with those introduced in the second and third phases.
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Chief Executive Director Anuj Dayal said, ‘The first such train was re-inducted into service in November 2021. The remaining trains were gradually refurbished and re-inducted by April 2023. Another set of 18 trains were awarded for refurbishment. He said that the renovation work is likely to be completed by March 2025.
Other modifications to these train sets include refurbishment of wooden floors with composite materials and electrical panels, as well as re-painting of the saloon and cab interior.
A DMRC official said, “As part of this mid-life upgrade, trains are retrofitted or modified with new features to bring them at par with the rest of the trains, which will be introduced later in Phase II and III expansion.
According to the DMRC, construction on Delhi Metro Phase 1 with 65.1 km of routes began in 1998. The first section was opened in 2002 and the last section was opened in 2006. This phase included construction of three new lines on broad gauge tracks. This included 22 km long Red Line from Shahdara to Rithala with 18 stations, 11 km long Yellow Line from University to Central Secretariat with 10 stations and 32.1 km long Blue Line from Dwarka Sector 9 to Indraprastha with 30 stations.
The construction work of the second phase started in 2006 with a total length of 124.9 km. The first section opened in 2008 and the last in 2011. violet line) in 2014 and the last segment (grey line) coming in October 2019.
DMRC has currently started construction of three priority corridors under Phase IV – Janakpuri West-RK Ashram (Magenta Line), Majlis Park-Maujpur (Pink Line) and Aerocity-Tughlakabad (Silver Line).