Delhi Underground

Alarming delays
To deal with never-ending train delays on the Delhi Metro’s newly-inaugurated line-3 that makes inroads into Noida,the DMRC has plans of inducting two new trains on the longest line (47.4 km) every month. Justifying the problems,however,the DMRC says it has received the maximum number of reports of passengers pressing the PEA (passenger emergency alarm) on line-3. A senior official said while there are no such reports from any other Metro line,there have been over 43 such cases on line-3 in November alone. DMRC spokesperson Anuj Dayal said pressing the PEA means a delay of at least 15 minutes. “In most cases,no passenger takes responsibility of having pressed the emergency alarm.”

Wi-fi on the tracks
While the Railways’ ambitious plans of making prominent railway stations and trains wi-fi enabled is still a distant dream stuck in the files,the Northern Railways’ headquarters,Baroda House,is all set to get completely wi-fi soon. Officials working in the heritage building will now be working in a hi-tech environment while railway commuters will have to await their turn of availing the facility.

Fast forward
Soon after a boy’s murder allegedly by policemen in Simbhaoli village of Ghaziabad,the Superintendent of Police,Rural,K K Asthana was suspended for not being able to pacify villagers in the area who were furious after the incident. The new SP Rural,Captain Baig,was picked up from Etah by the IG Meerut and told to start for the place of his new posting. The new SP Rural did not even get a chance to see the transfer order in writing. After four hours,he again received a call from the IG asking him whether or not he had reached the village. Who says governments don’t work at a furious pace when they have to?

Made in India
“We are like this only” is the popular expression used for the many eccentricities of the people of the country and the Trade Fair was a perfect place to see many of the quirks on display. Karachi Food Stall with tiny Pakistani flags on its roof boasted of great Pakistani cuisine. There was a mile-long queue outside it on all the days of the fair. Recently,a visitor was in for a surprise when he recognised the cooks sweating inside,and pretending they were from Karachi,as the ones he had seen in Old Delhi! When he asked them,the cooks appeared to be amused but did not say anything. But they smiled when the customer said,“You are making Purani Dilli style chhole bhature”.