Wind puts brakes on Violet Line, hundreds stranded

Commuters on the Violet Line of the Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC) had a tough time reaching their destinations on Thursday when, forced by wind, a portion of the railing broke away and fell on tracks near Lajpat Nagar, obstructing the run of the trains.

The DMRC attributed the mishap to wind and rain that lashed the city briefly in the evening and resorted to run trains in short loops between Nehru Place and Escorts Mujeser (Faridabad), and between Central Secretariat and Kashmere Gate.

The railing portion fell on track at around 4 p.m. on the stretch between Jangpura station (underground) and Lajpat Nagar station (elevated).

"A portion of railing on the ramp (where train comes out from underground Jangpura Station towards Lajpat Nagar) fell on track that goes towards Faridabad around 4:05 p.m. due to wind/rain impact.

"As a result, the train approaching towards Lajpat Nagar was put on hold," the DMRC said in a statement.

Commuters stranded inside the train had to vacate and walk along the verge of the track to reach the Lajpat Nagar Station platform, where they had to opt for alternative mode of transport.

To remove the obstruction, the overhead electrification was turned off between Central Secretariat and Nehru Place, it said.

It was not before 5:45 p.m. that the movement of trains could begin on the single line running from Nehru Place to the Central Secretariat.

--IANS

vn/qd/vm