With the flagging off of 17-km Duhai-Modi Nagar North section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor, the Namo Bharat train becomes operational on 34 km of the corridor, spanning eight stations from Sahibabad to Modi Nagar North. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the additional section on Wednesday remotely from Kolkata.

Simultaneously the priority corridor of Agra Metro was inaugurated virtually by the Prime Minister as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other leaders took the inaugural train ride from the Taj Mahal station to Taj Mahal East station. With the launch of Agra Metro, Uttar Pradesh becomes the sixth State to have metro facilities in most cities, with services in Lucknow, Ghaziabad, Noida, Greater Noida and Kanpur, he added.

The RRTS extension encompasses three stations - Murad Nagar, Modi Nagar South and Modi Nagar North. The Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor, stretching over 82 km, is expected to reduce travel time between Delhi and Meerut to less than an hour.

Speaking at the inauguration, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said once the entire Rapid Rail Transit System is ready, it will be the “second largest metro system” in the country.

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we could develop this corridor at such a fast pace. The work of RRTS and its quality is the finest in the country. Once the entire rapid rail transit system is ready, it will be the second largest metro system in the country,” Puri said.

According to the National Capital Region Transport Corporation, or NCRTC, on the Murad Nagar Station, the work of Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) System, Platform Screen Door (PSD), CCTV installation, Customer Service Centre, Ticketing Counter, Railing and Washroom construction is over.

“Along with this, escalators and lifts have also been installed for movement from the concourse to the platform level. Presently the work of roof sealing, painting and lighting of the station is going on. For the convenience of passengers, two entry and exit gates are being built in the station, the construction work of which is in the final stage,” the NCRTC said.

The Murad Nagar Station has been connected with the Murad Nagar Bus Stand under multimodal integration to ease passenger movement. Modi Nagar has been given two stations - Modi Nagar South and Modi Nagar North - under the project, in view of intractable traffic jams the stretch often witnesses.

The length of both these stations is approximately 215 metres, width approximately 25 metres, and height of the platform approximately 16 metres.

“There is usually a traffic jam in Modi Nagar from Modi Mill till Raj Chowpla. Many times, it takes hours for people to cross this area.

“In view of the dense population of people in this area, the NCRTC has decided to build two stations here, Modi Nagar South and Modi Nagar North. With these two stations, Modi Nagar will get relief from the problem of severe traffic jams,” the NCRTC said.

The newly-added 17-km stretch of the Namo Bharat train extends the coverage of the Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor beyond its initial operational ‘priority section.’ The RRTS boasts a design speed of 180 kmph and operation speed of 160 kmph.

Agra Metro services on the 6-km corridor will be available to commuters from Thursday onwards, with stops at Taj Mahal East station , Captain Shubham Gupta station, Fatehabad Road station, Taj Mahal station and Mankameshwar Temple station.

Speaking at the flagging off ceremony at the Taj Mahal station, Yogi said Agra Metro would provide world-class public transport to locals and tourists visiting the city.

“Agra is one of the oldest cities of Uttar Pradesh. It is a part of ‘Braj bhoomi’. This city is associated with stories of bravery and valour of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj,” the chief minister said.

Yogi appreciated the Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) for timely completion of the first phase of Agra Metro, and said it has become operational nine months ahead of schedule.

Modi had laid the foundation stone of the metro on December 7, 2020 and it was completed in 23 months, the Chief Minister said even as he lauded the UPMRC for “maintaining the quality” of the project.