The upcoming Delhi Metro corridors are likely to miss their completion deadlines due to inordinate delay in land acquisition at several areas. Numerous land pockets are yet to be acquired for the major proposed metro corridors, including the longest Mukundpur to Shiv Vihar corridor, Janakpuri West to Kalindi Kunj and Jahangirpuri to Badli.
The 4.8 km Jahangirpuri-Badli corridor, which was supposed to herald the opening of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s (DMRC) phase III network, has already been delayed and is now expected to be completed by this year-end. “The land for the construction of the depot at Badli is yet to be acquired,” said Mangu Singh, Managing Director DMRC.
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. The corridor is an extension of the present Yellow line (Huda City Centre to Jahangirpuri), one of the busiest corridors of the Metro’s network and
will have three stations — including Shalimar Place, Rohini Sector 18 and Badli.
Apart from this, several land pockets are yet to be acquired for the construction of the longest upcoming corridor of the Delhi Metro network connecting Mukundpur to Shiv Vihar. “land pockets need to be acquired at Trilokpuri for the construction of the Metro station and viaduct, for cut and cover tunneling at Sarai Kale Khan, for the construction of a depot at Vinod Nagar and for the construction of the Metro station at Mayapuri,” said a source.
The 58-km-long corridor will provide connectivity to the northern, western and eastern parts of Delhi. A major portion of this line will run along the arterial Ring Road with stations at South Extension, INA, lajpat Nagar, Ashram, Sriniwas Puri and others.
Sources said that a major chunk of land to facilitate construction of this corridor falls under several agencies —including Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIDC) and Delhi Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation (DTIDC) — which are demanding market rates for the land pockets. However, the DTIDC land at Anand Vihar is expected to be sanctioned soon to the Delhi Metro, said a senior Delhi Government official. “The major concern was that the construction of the Metro station might affect the design of revamping the ISBT Anand Vihar. However, the matter is soon to be settled,” he said.
Several hurdles plague the construction of the second longest corridor of the network to be constructed between Janakpuri West and Botanical Garden (36 km), which will run along the busy Outer Ring Road. “land pockets are yet to be acquired at Sadar Bazar for the construction of ramp and viaduct, entry and exit for the upcoming Metro station at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport domestic terminal and for the tunneling work at Kalkaji,” added the source. With 22 stations, the Janakpuri Corridor will connect Southeastern parts of Delhi with the Western Delhi.
The Delhi Metro, however, is confident of completing the construction work within the deadline of year 2016. “All the land pockets are under discussions with the relevant authorities and all efforts are being made to acquire them at the earliest,” said a spokesperson with DMRC.