Delhi Metro celebrates 20 years of operations in NCR

Delhi Metro on Saturday celebrated the landmark moment of completing 20 years of metro operations in the national capital region.

"DMRC today celebrated the landmark moment of completing 20 years of Metro operations in NCR. It was marked with the inauguration of a special exhibition highlighting 20 years of operations & the Indo-Japan partnership which has helped shape the Delhi Metro project," DMRC tweeted.

"Exhibition was inaugurated at Welcome Metro Station by His Excellency, Mr SUZUKI Hiroshi, Ambassador Extraordinary of Japan to India, in presence of Sh. Vikas Kumar, MD/DMRC, Mr SAITO Mitsunori, Chief Representative, JICA India Office and other officials," it added.

A statement from the DMRC stated that Japan has a long-standing association with the DMRC since the inception of the organisation through financial support and technical assistance for the construction of all phases of the Delhi Metro project so far.

"This exhibition offers glimpses of Delhi Metro's landmark moments in the past 20 years and covers special occasions such as inauguration of major corridors, introduction of new technologies, unique facilities, interesting facts and visits by important personalities," it said.

The exhibition also showcases the partnership of Delhi Metro and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and other Japanese organisations which have supported Delhi Metro in its journey so far.

As part of the celebrations of the 20th operations anniversary, the first train which was flagged off by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihar Vajpayee on December 24, 2002, was specially decorated and operated today on the Red Line.

"Announcements were made inside the train to inform passengers that they were travelling in the very first train which sparked a delightful reaction from the passengers inside the train. Delhi Metro utilises the space in its stations to showcase artworks and exhibitions that reflect either the rich culture of places where the stations are located to commemorate special occasions or cover a specific theme," the statement said.

"Many of our stations have theme-based artworks as well. The journey of Delhi Metro operations commenced on 24th December 2002, when the then Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee had flagged off the first-ever train on the 8.4 kilometre-long Shahdara to Tis Hazari corridor of the Red Line. Since then, the Delhi Metro network has expanded exponentially," it added.

The network is further being expanded in the phase -- IV project, after completion of which, another 65 kilometres of network will be added. Currently, the construction is in progress on three approved priority corridors of Phase IV. Two of them are the extension of existing Pink (May's Park to Maujpur) and Magenta (R K Ashram Marg to Japankpuri West) Lines, while a new Silver Line will come up connecting Tughlakabad to Delhi Aerocity.

( With inputs from ANI )