Sitting in Delhi metro to be as good as being 'out in the open'

New Delhi, Sep 3 In a bid to allay people's fears of catching coronavirus infection in closed and cramped metro compartments, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has modified the air conditioning system of the trains to allow 100 percent inflow of fresh air.

AC filters will also be thoroughly cleaned with sodium hypochlorite solution every seven days, as against the earlier norm of fifteen days. Besides this, earlier only 30 percent of fresh air was allowed inside the train, which has now been increased to its full capacity.

"Air conditioning system of trains has been modified to keep fresh air inflow to 100 percent open mode", said an official of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation. Besides this, arrangements have also been made to allow fresh air to flow through all the underground stations.

According to Rupa Nandy, Head of the International Association of Public Transport, with such standard operating procedures in place, "sitting in the metro will be as good as being out in the open".

This comes amidst apprehensions associated with an air-conditioned public transport system. Alluding to a survey conducted by a French health agency, Nandy said that only one per cent of clusters are linked to transport.

Citing the data, she added that 24 per cent of coronavirus cases came from workplaces, 16 per cent from health care venues, 14 per cent from family gatherings, nine per cent from public events, and eight per cent from social accommodation.

Metro services will resume in a graded manner from September 7, across the country, but in a bid to avoid overcrowding at the stations and halt the spread of infection, the DMRC has released a set of new guidelines.

"We think the decision to resume the metro should have been taken much earlier in the initial phase of the unlockdown. The economy depends a lot on public transport. Not having a proper means of transportation restricts a lot of people from resuming work," said Nandy.

However, several epidemiologists believe that resumption of Delhi metro will further increase infections, while others think that it is necessary for the economy.

Dr DR Rai, former General Secretary of the Indian Medical Association

( With inputs from IANS )