Delhi Metro’s Blue Line snag irks commuters yet again

The Blue Line connects Dwarka Sector 21 in Delhi with Noida Electronic City, along with a branch line to Vaishali

Metro commuters between Noida-Ghaziabad and Delhi had a harrowing time during peak morning hours on Thursday as a technical snag hit train services on the busy Blue Line for nearly three hours.

A view of the Delhi Metro Blue Line. (HT File Photo)

The services between Dwarka sector 21 and Noida electronic city/Vaishali remained affected for nearly three hours from 6.43am to 9.45am. A Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) spokesperson said the snag occurred due to a broken catenary wire (a wire carrying electricity) on the up-line which goes towards Dwarka.

“The maintenance team reported that some broken charger cable and other wire was found at the site which may have been dropped by a carrier bird hitting the Over Head Equipment (OHE) and damaging the catenary wire,” the DMRC later said in a statement.

Train services were temporarily not available between Indraprastha and Yamuna Bank stations due to the absence of OHE resulting from the breakdown of catenary wire. “Single line train service was provided between Yamuna Bank and Barakhamba Road Metro station through the down line (towards Noida/Vaishali) as the restoration work was in progress on affected section to decongest the passenger rush. Alternate shuttle train service was also provided for passengers between Indraprastha and Yamuna Bank stations during the affected period,” it stated.

Services on the same line were disrupted on Monday too for nearly two hours due to snag in the overhead wire.

Huge crowds were seen at several stations, particularly at Indraprastha Metro station during the disruption of services. Gaurav Jain, a commuter said that the Blue Line is the worst in terms of snags. “There are abnormal delays between trains and frequent breakdowns which have made our life so difficult. Authorities should do something about it,” Jain said.

Abhishek Bharti, who was stuck at Dwarka metro station said that he was stuck for 20 minutes at Dwarka Metro station. “No one is attending the customer care number. The frequency of train very slow,” he said. Love Chauhan, a college student said that he was stuck at Laxmi Nagar metro station for over 30 minutes. “I am getting late for my classes due to this disruption,” he added.

“Delay in services between Dwarka Sector 21 and Noida Electronic City/Vaishali. Normal service on all other lines,” the DMRC had earlier tweeted in the morning.

The DMRC said an OHE maintenance team comprising 20-25 staff were deployed immediately at the affected site. Senior officials were also present at the site to oversee the restoration work. “Train services were effectively available on rest of the sections of Blue Line during this period in two loops i.e, from Yamuna Bank to Vaishali/NOIDA Electronic City and Indraprastha to Dwarka Sec-21 sections. Normal services on the entire Blue Line from Dwarka Sec-21 to NOIDA Electronic City/Vaishali was resumed from 9:45 AM onwards. Constant monitoring and inspection on the affected section will also be done by the OHE officials throughout the day,” it stated.