Metro may miss Phase 3 deadline

Danger of missing deadline looms large over Delhi Metro’s ambitious Phase III network, with construction work on several corridors progressing at a sluggish pace. According to a latest progress report submitted by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation to the city administration, the overall progress of seven under construction lines is 36.78 per cent till June.

The physical progress on the 4.489- km- long Jahangirpuri to Badli corridor, which is scheduled to open by March next year, is 44.63 per cent. The stretch, an extension of the present Yellow Line ( Huda City Centre to Jahangirpuri) and was supposed to herald the opening of Delhi Metro’s Phase III network, seems to be running much behind the schedule. Being close to the Haryana border, the short corridor stretch will hugely benefit people from cities, such as Sonepat. According to Delhi Metro’s detailed project report, the five- km stretch is expected to register 30,000 commuters daily.

Work on the two new corridors which are being constructed during this phase — Mukundpur to Yamuna Vihar and Janakpuri West to Kalindi Kunj — is also progressing at a slow pace. As per the progress communiqué, the physical progress on the 55.697 km Mukundpur to Yamuna Vihar corridor, which will run parallel to the arterial Ring Road, is just 35.70 per cent, while the physical progress on the second longest Janakpuri west to Kalindi Kunj line ( 33.494 km) is 31.38 per cent. The DMRC has set the target completion date for both the challenging corridors as March 2016.

Similarly, the physical progress on the upcoming Central Secretariat to Kashmere Gate corridor is 47.74 per cent. The DMRC has already opened a small segment on this corridor ( Central Secretariat to Mandi House) for public earlier this year. The work on this 9.370 km corridor had started in May 2011 and the Delhi Metro has set December 2015 as the target for its completion.

Lagging behind the most in terms of the civil construction work are the Dwarka to Najafgarh and Mundka to Bahadurgarh corridor, with physical progress of 13.83 per cent and 23.13 per cent respectively. An impressive progress has been made on the Faridabad extension, on which over 50 per cent work has been completed. “Delays only result in cost escalation. After the construction of the corridors, the processes such as trial run and mandatory clearance by commissioner for rail safety for commercial operations usually take about 2- 3 months,” an official with the city administration said.

The Delhi Metro, however, insisted that it is confident of completing the construction work within the deadline of year 2016.