Delhi metro runs with doors open between two stations

In a bizarre incident that could have resulted in a mishap, all doors of a metro train remained open for two minutes as it travelled between two stations on an elevated corridor.

The incident occurred during the morning peak-hour rush, around 9.40 am on a Yellow-Line train traveling from Arjangarh to Ghitorni. Even as the train sped at about 60 kmph between these two stations with the doors open, no injuries were reported.

Trouble started at the Sikandarpur metro station when the operator’s control panel showed that the door on the cabin on the rear end was open. The operator got down to check and found the door closed.

However, an inbuilt mechanism in the train doesn’t allow it to move if any door remains open; even if it happens while the train is moving, brakes are applied automatically.

“As the signal still kept blinking on the control panel, the operator called the operations control centre, which asked him to run the train by overriding the system,” said DMRC spokesman Anuj Dayal.

The train proceeded on its journey. With the safety mechanism off, the operator was supposed to have physically checked if the doors were closed. At the next halt, Arjangarh, he realised not only had he forgotten to close the doors but also did not step out of his car to check it out. In a hurry to maintain punctuality, the operator skipped the ‘procedure order’.

The f act t hat t he doors were open was only detected at Ghitorni, the next station on the route. As there was no glitch in the train itself and it was apparent that the fault was that of the operator, the train continued its journey towards Jahagirpuri. After completing its trip, the train was sent to the depot for the travel data could be retrieved and physical inspection. Dayal said the train operator was immediately suspended and action would also be taken against other officers, including an assistant line supervisor.