DMRC plans infra upgrade at underground stations to address call drops

To address the problem of calls dropping and phone network connectivity while at the underground stations of the Delhi Metro, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is planning to lay more cables and use signal boosters at 29 underground stations across its network, officials in the know of the matter have said

To address the problem of calls dropping and phone network connectivity while at the underground stations of the Delhi Metro, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is planning to lay more cables and use signal boosters at 29 underground stations across its network, officials in the know of the matter have said.

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While 20 of the 29 stations fall on the Yellow Line -- Delhi’s busiest Line in terms of daily passenger ridership-- the remaining are spread across Blueand Violet lines. The DMRC said the process of laying cables and installing equipment has begun and is expected to be completed within two months, before signal boosters are installed.

With passenger numbers rising, after the gradual easing of Covid-19 restrictions, the issue of call drops has been hassling Metro users for some time now. While the DMRC has upgraded the connectivity infra across the Metro network, work has remained pending at these 29 stations. The Yellow Line had an average daily ridership of 1.16 million passengers per day between May and July 2022, followed by the Blue Line, which had a daily ridership of 1.13 million passengers per day. In comparison, the Violet Line has a daily ridership of 424,254 passengers per day.

The Yellow and Blue Lines currently have a combined average ridership of 2.29 million passengers a day, which is more than half, or 55.11%, of the total daily ridership of the Delhi Metro

DMRC is carrying out this upgrade in collaboration with Telecommunications Consultants India Limited (TCIL), a consultancy firm under the Union government. Meanwhile, licensing of space has been awarded to In-Building Solutions (IBS) for providing cellular coverage at these stations, officials said.

The stations impacted on the Yellow Line include Guru Tegh Bahadur Nagar station, Vishwavidyalaya, Vidhansabha, Civil Lines, Kashmere Gate, Chandni Chowk, Chawri Bazar, New Delhi, Rajiv Chowk, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat, Udyog Bhawan, Lok Kalyan Marg, Jor Bagh, INA, AIIMS, Green Park, Hauz Khas, Malviya Nagar and Saket.

On the Blue Line, the stations identified for network and connectivity boosting are Barakhambha Road, Mandi House and Dwarka Sec-21 metro station, while on the Violet Line, the stations identified include Janpath, Central Secretariat, Khan Market, JLN Stadium and Jangpura. The Violet Line stretch of Mandi House will also be covered, the DMRC said.

“The technical team of DMRC and TCIL has already started cable laying and installation of equipment at stations and tunnels. This work is expected to be completed in a couple of months. Thereafter, installations related to signal strength of different phone service providers will be executed to boost signals,” said Anuj Dayal, principal executive director, corporate communications, DMRC.

“While network connectivity is already available across the entire Metro network, this new initiative will help in further boosting the signal at these 29 stations and reduce instances of call drops,” a DMRC spokesperson said.

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