‘Blasts’ on Pink Line coach were common tech snag, clarifies DMRC

A “miscommunication” within the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) resulted in five passengers waiting for the last Pink Line Metro train at Mayur Vihar Phase-1 boarding a train meant for “stabling” (stationed for the night), and walking on the tracks to return to the station to catch the right train. While social media posts claimed there were “three blasts”, officials dismissed it as common occurrence of panto flashing — when foreign materials come in contact with the pantograph and overhead wires.

“...Five passengers mistakenly boarded this train and they had to be de-boarded and brought to the platform to board the designated last train,” said Anuj Dayal, executive director (corporate communications), DMRC.

A five-second video of the incident uploaded on social media by a resident also showed sparks in the overhead wires.

“There was a blast over the Mayur Vihar Phase-I Metro line. There were three blasts on the overhead electrical wires. The Metro has been halted for over 30 minutes and there are a few passengers inside the train,” tweeted one Preeti Nahar late Thursday night.

DMRC said “no such incident has taken place which compromises the safety of any of its passengers”.

“The blast being referred to in the tweet video is a common phenomenon known as panto flashing, which happens due to several external factors such as rain, foreign material etc coming in contact with the pantograph of the train and OHE (overhead electrification) during movement and in no way causes any safety concern or disruption to services,” Dayal said. Pantograph flashes occur with a transit system that operates with overhead power. It often erupts in flashes during rains, thunderstorms or when a foreign object comes in contact with the overhead wires, but this does no harm to the system because of the multiple safety insulation layers around the electric wiring.