PM Modi was seen interacting with school children on board Name Bharat train
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the 13-kilometre-long Delhi section of the "Namo Bharat" corridor between Ashok Nagar and Sahibabad. In this section, six kilometres is underground and includes Anand Vihar, a prominent station on the corridor, which is also known as the Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor.
PM Modi purchased a smart ticket and interacted with passengers during his ride on the Namo Bharat Train. He was also seen interacting with school children, who gifted him sketches and recited poems.
With this inauguration, Namo Bharat trains will now arrive in the national capital. PM Modi inaugurated the 17 km priority section between Sahibabad and Duhai Depot in October last year.
This also marks the first time that Namo Bharat trains will operate in an underground section, the officials said.
The passenger operations will commence from 5 pm today and trains will be available to the public at a frequency of 15 minutes. The fare from New Ashok Nagar RRTS station to Meerut South is Rs 150 for standard coach and Rs 225 for premium coach.
Currently, a 42-km stretch of the corridor between Sahibabad and Meerut South, featuring nine stations, is operational. With this inauguration, the operational stretch of the Namo Bharat corridor will expand to 55 km, with a total of 11 stations.
Delhi-Meerut Travel Time Reduced
With the commencement of operations on this section, Meerut is now directly connected to Delhi. This will reduce travel time by one-third, enabling commuters to travel from New Ashok Nagar to Meerut South in just under 40 minutes.
Anand Vihar underground station is one of the largest stations on the Namo Bharat corridor. Commuters will be able to travel from here to Meerut South in just 35 minutes.
As a special arrangement for the movement of vehicles and pedestrians at this station, three bridges have been built over the Ghazipur drain. Two of these bridges are to be used for vehicle entry and exit, while one is exclusively for pedestrians, they said.
New Ashok Nagar is the first elevated Namo Bharat station to be operational on the Delhi section. Here, the corridor crosses the New Ashok Nagar metro station at a height of 20 meters.
Along with train services, a commercial centre has also been planned at the station for the convenience of commuters. This station is being connected to the Blue Line of Delhi Metro through a 90-meter-long foot over bridge, the officials said.
To date, Namo Bharat trains have served over 50 lakh commuters.
Further construction in other sections -- New Ashok Nagar-Sarai Kale Khan and Meerut South-Modipuram -- is underway.
Once the entire Delhi-Meerut Namo Bharat Corridor becomes operational, it is projected to remove over one lakh private vehicles from the roads and reduce carbon emissions by 2.5 lakh tonnes annually.
Covering 82 km, the Namo Bharat corridor originates at Sarai Kale Khan in New Delhi and terminates at Modipuram in Meerut.
It features 16 Namo Bharat stations along with nine additional stations for the Meerut Metro, making it a comprehensive and transformative regional transit solution.
