Delhi metro, a gateway to old world charm

From delicacies to little known monuments, the charm of old Delhi has been revived by the metro for gen-x, most of whom, had till now read about the majestic Chandni Chowk in books or heard tales of the walled city from their parents.

However, for people with fond memories of the walled city, metro has come as a blessing. No more getting stuck in the unending traffic jams or headache inducing parking problems.

The popularity of the underground section can be gauged from the fact that there had been a two-fold increase in the commuter traffic after it was thrown open.

"Before the full section of the underground was opened, the overall commuter traffic was in the range of 1.4-1.5 lakhs per day, today it is around 2.5-3 lakhs," said Anuj Dayal of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.

For Kamaluddin Ahmed, who has a shop in the Chawri Bazaar, the metro has opened the dil of dilli and vice-versa. "Before the metro started, whenever my wife asked me to take our family to the India Gate, I gave some excuse or the other and wriggled out. But now the situation is different," says Kamaluddin sitting on the lawns of the India Gate.

Kamaluddin is also proud of the fact that India could build an underground rail, that too in the middle of the most congested place in the Capital.

Now, one need not plan beforehand to visit old Delhi to taste its famed delicacies or the ever famous cloth shops and the bangle stores.

The kachauris, the gol guppas and the faluda kulfis are just a metro ride away!

With the extension of the underground network from Delhi University to the central secretariat, students are now at a great advantage-Janpath for fashionable and affordable clothes, chill out areas in Connaught Place (getting down at Rajiv Chowk), and guides and kunjis at book stores in Nai Sarak (getting down at Chawri Bazaar) are now nothing more than a stroll in the park. Get on to the metro, get to all the three places and comeback before it's evening.

It is that convenient now! for the more adventurous with a bit of time on hand, the delicacies of Chandni Chowk, and some of the most important but unexplored historical monuments like the Mirza Ghalib Haveli in the ballimaran gali beckon.

It is not just the gen-x exploring the walled city-officials from government offices located in and around the central secretariat could be seen milling around chat corners looking for a quick munch.

A group of Reserve Bank of India officials, who were busy slurping away kulfi faluda were in no mood to answer except for one Sharmaji, who said the trip reminded him of the olden days when he and his siblings used to frequent the place.

According to Shahjid of Ashok Chat Corner, just outside the Chawri Bazaar station, the excitement among the office goers have come down. "For three or four days after the metro started its services, many people used to come down during lunch time, but now the numbers have decreased," says Shajid.

The entrance to the Chawri Bazaar station is very much like the place around, it just melts into the atmosphere, almost unrecognisable if one were to pass by without noticing the big blue board with the station's name, but once one gets in, it's a different place unlike the surroundings outside!

It is early days, and as kamaluddin says, once the college goers crowd the places, and all the stations are fully built, the raunaq (charm) of old Delhi will be back in all its glory.