Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Delhi section of the Namo Bharat corridor today, which connects Ashok Nagar to Sahibabad. This new 13-kilometer stretch includes a significant underground segment of six kilometers, featuring the prominent Anand Vihar station.
During the inaugural function, PM Modi bought a smart ticket and watched over the passengers in Namo Bharat Train. He mingled with local schoolchildren who drew his pictures and recited poems, making the day more personalized for him.
Namo Bharat trains will now chug into the national capital. This was an important milestone as the 17-kilometer priority section between Sahibabad to Duhai Depot was inaugurated by PM Modi last October. Namo Bharat trains are running in an underground section for the first time, according to officials.
The passenger services will begin on Friday at 5 pm with the trains plying every 15 minutes. The fare from New Ashok Nagar RRTS to Meerut South has been fixed at ₹150 for the standard coaches, whereas the premium ones are set to charge ₹225.
Presently, a 42-kilometer stretch of this corridor connects Sahibabad to Meerut South and carries nine functional stations. The recent opening has stretched the running length of Namo Bharat corridor to 55 kilometers. Presently, it has a total count of 11 stations.
This section directly connects Meerut to Delhi upon operationalization, with the travel time being reduced by a third. Now, the commuters would cover the distance from New Ashok Nagar to Meerut South in less than 40 minutes. Anand Vihar underground station is one of the biggest on the corridor and will facilitate journeys from here to Meerut South in just 35 minutes.
Three bridges have been built over the Ghazipur drain to provide easy connectivity in Anand Vihar and allow the smooth passage of vehicles and pedestrians. While two bridges are for vehicle movement, the remaining one is for pedestrians. New Ashok Nagar will be the first elevated Namo Bharat station in the Delhi section.
The corridor can cross over the New Ashok Nagar metro station at a height of 20 meters above ground level. A commercial centre is also being developed along this metro station in order to satisfy the other needs of the commuters. It houses a 90-metre-long foot over bridge that will directly link it to Delhi Metro’s Blue Line.
Since its inception, Namo Bharat trains have carried over 5 million commuters. Other stretches such as New Ashok Nagar-Sarai Kale Khan and Meerut South-Modipuram are yet to be constructed. The fully operational Delhi-Meerut Namo Bharat Corridor will take over 100,000 private vehicles off the roads and reduce carbon emissions by 250,000 tonnes per year.
The 82-kilometer corridor starting from Sarai Kale Khan in New Delhi will go up to Modipuram in Meerut with a total of 16 Namo Bharat stations, along with nine more for the Meerut Metro, making it a game-changing regional transit option.
