Do not take Metro unless very necessary: Delhi Transport Minister urges public

New Delhi: On the eve of Delhi Metro services resuming, Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot on Sunday urged public to take it only if it's "very necessary" due to Covid-19 pandemic raging across the national capital.

"I appeal to passengers to follow all protocols while travelling. But I would also advise people to not take the metro unless very necessary," Gahlot said while inspecting preparations at the Rajiv Chowk metro station.

Delhi reported 2,973 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday taking the total count of cases in the metropolis to 1,88,193.

The total toll due to the disease has reached 4,538 in the national capital with 25 deaths reported on Saturday.

Delhi government said that the number of active cases is 19,870 while 1,63,785 patients have recovered.

A total of 9,562 RTPCR/CBNAAT/TrueNat tests were conducted in Delhi on Saturday while 29,333 rapid antigen tests were conducted.

Tokens will not be accepted in the Delhi Metro when its services resume after a gap of over five months on September 7, Gahlot said on Thursday.

He said Civil Defence volunteers and personnel from the Enforcement wing of the Transport department would be deployed at the stations to help in crowd management and ensure proper social distancing by the passengers.

"Tokens will not be allowed in Metro trains in Delhi to ensure protection against COVID-19 infection. Also, all the stations, except those in containment zones, will be open but depending on crowd, only some gates may open," he told PTI.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has allowed opening of Metro train services in the country from September 7 in a graded manner. Its guidelines allow use of token for travel after proper sanitisation.

The minister also said some trains may skip a few stations, after origin station, depending on the number of passengers in them and at the stations.

After being closed for over five months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Delhi Metro services will be resumed in three stages from September 7-12, but stations located in containment zones will remain closed, DMRC officials said on Wednesday.

Train services will commence with adequate frequency as they were before March 22, which may be increased or decreased as per requirement.

However, due to trains halting for longer duration at stations, there will be minor increase in time required for performing a trip, they said.

The total number of entry points at the stations will be heavily curtailed to ensure compliance with COVID-19 safety norms, the officials had said.