PM Modi inaugurates Delhi Metro Phase 4, hails country’s progress in infra works

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the first functional section of the Delhi Metro’s Phase 4, Janakpuri West to Krishna Park Extension and laid the foundation stone for the Rithala-Kundli corridor, an extension to the Red Line that will see Delhi make its fourth foray into Haryana via the Delhi Metro.

On the occasion, Modi noted that the Metro network in the country crossed the 1,000-kilometre mark, terming it a “significant milestone in India’s modern infrastructure journey”.

“In 2014, when the country gave me an opportunity, India was not even in the top 10 globally in terms of Metro connectivity. However, in the last 10 years, India has become the third-largest country in the world in terms of Metro network and in this current tenure, India will have the second largest Metro network in the world,” he said, after inaugurating the Krishna Park Extension Metro station, the first station under Phase 4 to become operational.

The Krishna Park Metro station lies on a 2.8-kilometre stretch of the under-construction Janakpuri West to RK Ashram corridor, an extension of the Magenta Line (Botanical Garden-Janakpuri West).

The Metro station, built underground, was made operational for the public at 3pm, with trains arriving initially at a frequency of 16 minutes, DMRC officials said. The PM said the project will help provide increased connectivity to people living in Krishna Park, parts of Vikaspuri and Janakpuri, among others.

The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of the 26.5-kilometre Rithala-Kundli section of Delhi Metro Phase 4, which is estimated to cost around ₹6,230 crore on Sunday and take four years to complete.

“Before 2014, India’s Metro network was only 248 kilometres and limited to five cities. In the past 10 years, over 752 kilometres of new Metro lines have been inaugurated in India,” the PM said, adding Metro services were currently available in 21 cities nationwide.

The proposed Rithala-Kundli corridor will connect Rithala in Delhi to Nathupur (Kundli) in Haryana, significantly enhancing connectivity in the northwestern parts of Delhi and Haryana, he said. This is set to benefit people living in Rohini, Bawana, Narela, and Kundli, improving access to residential, commercial, and industrial zones.

Once completely operational, it will facilitate travel across Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh through the extended Red Line. Currently, the Red Line starts at Shaheed Sthal in Ghaziabad and runs till Rithala in north Delhi. The further extension into Haryana via Delhi will allow connection from UP to Haryana via Delhi. This entire stretch will comprise of 21 stations, all of which will be elevated.

The stations approved under the project are Rithala, Rohini Sector 25, Rohini Sector 26, Rohini Sector 31, Rohini Sector 32, Rohini Sector 36, Barwala, Rohini Sector 35, Rohini Sector 34, Bawana Industrial Area - 1 Sector 3,4, Bawana Industrial Area - 1 Sector 1,2, Bawana JJ Colony, Sanoth, New Sanoth, Depot Station, Bhorgarh village, Anaj Mandi Narela, Narela DDA Sports Complex, Narela, Narela Sector 5, Kundli and Nathupur.

Emphasising the government’s primary focus has been “infrastructure development”, Modi said a budget of around ₹2 lakh crore 10 years ago has now been increased to over ₹11 lakh crore.

With the addition of the Krishna Park Extension station, the Delhi Metro network now comprises 289 stations, spanning 394.448 kilometres.

“With the addition of this section, the Magenta Line will now become about 40 kilometres long. The rest of the Magenta Line extension from Krishna Park Extension to RK Ashram Marg will be completed by 2026, in phases,” said Anuj Dayal, principal executive director, corporate communications, DMRC.

Among those in attendance at the inauguration were Union minister of housing and urban affairs Manohar Lal Khattar, Delhi lieutenant governor Vinay Kumar Saxena and Delhi chief minister Atishi.