Metro passengers stuck inside the tunnel on Tuesday had a horrifying tale to tell. Forced to open the emergency door of the train on their own and come on to the track towards Central Secretariat, they said there was no rescue in sight - a fact that made their experience even worse.

To their utter shock, helpline numbers provided by Delhi Metro were of no use as most of their calls went unattended. Anuj Dahiya, who works at Udyog Bhavan, recalled his horrifying experience, “The train was jam-packed. The air-conditioners had stopped working and it was suffocating inside. Announcements were made that the fault will be rectified soon but in vain. Passengers had to exit from the emergency door and walk down the Metro tracks. It was a risk to our lives.”

Senior citizens, especially, had a tough time as people jostled and elbowed each other. The elderly and children travelling in the train made frantic calls to their families, informing them of the incident. This was tedious and frustrating since mobile connectivity is low and erratic underground.

Another commuter, Meera Kumar, a resident of Nangloi, said she this commotion was frightening. “There was no tunnel ventilation. We were feeling suffocated and nauseous. Even the tunnel lights were not on and as a result, we had to step into the dark tunnel to cross it. Thankfully, someone had forced opened the emergency exit for us to come out. I tried making calls to the helpline number but to no avail,” she complained.

“I was feeling worried as there was no light inside the tunnel for 10 minutes. We called the Metro staff, but they were busy repairing the fault. Most of us had to walk down the tunnel and then get out at the Central Secretariat Station. For a while, I felt I was lost completely, but somehow I controlled the panic,” said another commuter, who was headed to Green Park from Model Town.

“An octogenarian who was also walking with me advised me to move straight and when we saw the platform of Central Secretariat Station, we heaved a sigh of relief,” he added.

Security guards and CISF personnel arrived much later. There was utter chaos on the platforms as well as outside Central Secretariat Metro Station, with Metro staff and CISF trying to clear the crowd slowly.