Delhi’s public transport network will face major disruption on Saturday as the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation shuts entry and exit gates at 45 stations and Northern Railway cancels 245 Delhi-bound trains ahead of a CJP protest at Jantar Mantar. Traffic restrictions and vehicle checks are also planned across Central and New Delhi.
The DMRC restrictions began at 9 pm on Friday and will continue until 6 pm on Saturday. Interchange facilities will remain available at the affected stations, except at New Delhi Metro station. Commuters have been advised to allow additional time, particularly if they are travelling towards railway stations, inter-state bus terminals, the airport or areas near the protest site.
The closures affect multiple Metro corridors. On the Yellow Line, the affected stations include Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat, Rajiv Chowk, New Delhi, Jahangirpuri and Haiderpur Badli Mor. The Red Line restrictions include Inderlok, Netaji Subhash Place, Seelampur, Welcome, Shahdara and Rithala.
On the Blue Line, stations listed for closure include Mandi House, Barakhamba Road, Ramakrishna Ashram Marg, Jhandewalan, Supreme Court and Indraprastha. The Pink Line stations affected include Lajpat Nagar, Ashram, Majlis Park, Yamuna Vihar and Khazuri Khas. Stations on the Violet and Magenta lines will also face restrictions. JLN Stadium and Lal Qila on the Violet Line, along with Patel Nagar and Akshardham on the Blue Line, have been identified as the nearest open Metro stations to the protest area.
The DMRC had earlier listed 57 stations among Delhi’s total of 227 stations for possible closure. The revised restriction involves the shutdown of entry and exit gates at 45 stations, while train interchange arrangements will continue at most affected locations.
The Delhi Traffic Police has identified 30 locations in New Delhi and Central Delhi where diversions and restrictions may be introduced from 6 am on Saturday, depending on the law-and-order situation. The listed locations include Mandi House, Jhandewalan, Patel Chowk, Rail Bhawan, Windsor Place, Dhaula Kuan Flyover and Lodhi Road Flyover, as well as roads and intersections around Connaught Place and Jantar Mantar.
Traffic is also expected to be heavy at Delhi’s borders as police personnel conduct checks on vehicles and people entering the Capital. Commuters from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and other neighbouring areas have been advised to plan ahead and avoid non-essential travel through locations likely to be affected.
Northern Railway has cancelled 245 trains originating from or terminating at Delhi stations. The cancellations include 75 mail and express services and 170 passenger trains. Two trains have been rescheduled, while nine have been short-terminated or short-originated.
The railway cancellations cover mail and express trains scheduled to reach New Delhi or Hazrat Nizamuddin between 4 am and 2 pm on Saturday, provided they departed their originating stations after 2 pm on Friday. Affected services include the Prayagraj Express, Sampoorna Kranti Express, Kanpur-New Delhi Shatabdi Express, Prayagraj-New Delhi Humsafar Express and Rajendra Nagar-New Delhi Tejas Express. Some Rajdhani and Tejas services, including the Mumbai Central-New Delhi and August Kranti Tejas Rajdhani services, have also been rescheduled.
The Metro, road and railway measures will remain in effect through the announced Saturday evening deadline, subject to further law-and-order decisions by the authorities.
