Airport Metro: Baggage may have to be checked in four hours before flight

While the four-hour wait might not bother outstation passengers,who can check in their baggage and then go shopping or sight-seeing around the Capital,international flyers based in the city might find it a time-consuming process. Also,this is unlikely to affect domestic flyers as most of them carry hand baggage that need not be checked in.

Speaking on the matter,a DAMEPL spokesperson said: “A process in this regard has been finalised between DAMEPL and DIAL,and submitted to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and BCAS for their approval. The check-in is proposed to be two-and-a-half hours prior to the flight time,but it is yet to be finalised. While all facilities required for baggage checks are in place,discussions with airlines are still in progress.”

Meanwhile,the stand-off between the CISF and Reliance Infrastructure (which leads the consortium) over deployment of security personnel at stations on the line continued. Sources said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has called for a meeting on the issue on Thursday or Friday,and it will be attended by representatives from the CISF,Reliance Infrastructure and Delhi Metro.

“As decided by the MHA,the stations will be manned by the CISF. The deployment numbers are still being discussed with the CISF. All the paperwork and arrangements required to start commercial operations have been put in place. The only exception is security arrangements,which are being discussed with the CISF/MHA,” the spokesperson said.

The 22.7-km line is now months behind schedule,and with the authorities yet to take a final decision on security arrangements,the opening date for the line is still unclear. “Once the security approval is received from the government,we will open the line to the public,” the spokesperson said.