New Delhi: Services on Delhi Metro’s Magenta Line from Botanical Garden to Kalkaji Mandir were disrupted for almost eight hours on Wednesday due to a signalling issue. Commuters shared videos on social media of crowded metro stations and trains on the affected section as trains ran at a restricted speed from 10:30 am to 6 pm.
Details of the disruption
“Train services between Kalkaji Mandir and Botanical Garden section of Magenta Line (Krishna Park Extension-Botanical Garden) were being regulated since 10:30 am on Wednesday due to an issue in the signalling system in the section. As a result, trains were being run at a restricted speed in this section, resulting in minor bunching of trains,” said Anuj Dayal, principal executive director, Corporate Communications, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
DMRC officials confirmed that normal train services were available on the rest of the section of Magenta Line.
Commuters faced severe delays
Many passengers reported that the ride on the Magenta Line took significantly longer than usual. Aziz Ahmad, a commuter who boarded the metro from Jamia Millia Islamia, said, “The metro didn’t move at the boarding station for almost 15 minutes and made frequent stops midway. Though the ride from Jamia Millia Islamia Metro station to Kalkaji is of nearly 10 minutes, it took around 40 minutes.” He added that the train was more crowded than usual at that time.
Another passenger, Himanshu Pandey, who travels daily from Botanical Garden to IIT, said the half-hour journey became an ordeal of two hours.
Social media reactions
Aman, a passenger on X, said, “I boarded the metro at 10:07 am from Janakpuri West and reached Okhla Bird Sanctuary at 12:55 am. Now thinking of going back using Blue Line.”
Another commuter, Harsh, wrote on social media, “I have been sitting inside the metro for the last 50 minutes now. How long will this take? If you are aware of the problem, then you should’ve announced it at the origin station only. Please update us.”
DMRC's response
Dayal, however, said to avoid any inconvenience to passengers, announcements were being made at the stations and inside the trains on Magenta Line, besides advising passengers to use alternate routes or lines if required.
