INDIA’S FIRST FULLY AUTOMATED METRO
Recently, the Prime Minister has inaugurated the country’s first fully automated Metro, (Driverless Metro) on Delhi Metro’s Magenta Line. He also extended the fully operational National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) to the Airport Express Line of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).
DRIVERLESS METRO
With this achievement, DMRC has entered the elite league of 7% of the world’s Metro networks where such a facility is available. In 2014, only five cities had Metro rail and currently, it is present in 18 cities and the number of Metro users has also increased manifold. The driverless trains will be fully automated, eliminating the possibility of human error. The technology has different levels or Grades of Automation (GoA):
• In GoA 1, trains are run by one driver.
• In GoA 2 and GoA 3, the role of the driver is reduced to operating doors and for taking over in case of emergencies and the starting and halting of trains is automated.
• In GoA 4, trains are set on a completely unattended operations mode.
DELHI METRO RAIL CORPORATION LTD.
The Delhi Metro is a rapid transit system serving Delhi and its satellite cities of Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurugram, Noida , Bahadurgarh and Ballabhgarh, in the National Capital Region of India. It is by far the largest and busiest metro in India, and second oldest after the Kolkata Metro. The network consists of 10 colour-coded lines serving 253 stations with a total length of 389 kilometres (242 mi), 285 stations, including the Gurugram Metro and Noida Metro. The system has a mix of underground, at-grade, and elevated stations using both broad-gauge and standard-gauge
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) is a centre-state public sector company that operates the Delhi Metro. The DMRC is also involved in the planning and implementation of metro rail, monorail, and high-speed rail projects in India and abroad. The work of DMRC is broadly fragmented into various parts namely Projects, Operation and Maintenance, Finance, Human Resources etc. which are controlled by the respective directors under the direction of managing director. DMRC was certified by the United Nations in 2011 as the first metro rail and rail-based system in the world to get carbon credits for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing carbon emission levels in the city by 630,000 tonnes every year
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROJECT
It uses a braking system in which 50% of the energy goes back into the grid when the brakes are applied, which will save a considerable amount of energy making it an energy-efficient system. In a boost to Make in India, various big companies are involved in the manufacturing of Metro coaches and dozens in the manufacture of Metro components. 130 MW of solar power is currently being used in the operations of Metro rail, which the government intends to increase to 600 MW. The Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) and Metro Lite models will reduce the distance between major cities and within them.
Other Developmental Works in Delhi:
• Incentivizing electric vehicles (EVs) by giving tax rebates.
• The old infrastructure of the capital is being transformed into environment-friendly infrastructure based on modern technology.
• Provision of better living conditions to slum dwellers through regularization of hundreds of colonies.
• Opening up of new tourist destinations and generation of employment.
• Work for the new Parliament building under the Central Vista Redevelopment Project will not only give employment to thousands of people from Delhi but will also change the face of the city.
NATIONAL COMMON MOBILITY CARD SERVICES
Indian Prime Minister recently inaugurated fully operational National Common Mobility Card service on the Airport Express Line of Delhi Metro, The card service was started in Ahmedabad in 2019. This one card will give integrated access to the commuters wherever they travel, whichever public transport they take. The idea of NCMC was floated by the Nandan Nilekani committee set up by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). NCMC will allow passengers with RuPay debit card, issued in the last 18 months by 23 banks to be swiped for Metro travel. This facility will become available on the entire Delhi Metro network by 2022. NCMC is an automatic fare collection system. It will turn smartphones into an inter-operable transport card that commuters can use to pay for Metro, bus and suburban railways services. It will allow entry and exit from Metro stations with the help of a smartphone, known as the automatic fare collection (AFC) system.
ONE NATION, ONE SYSTEM EXAMPLE
• One Nation, One Fastag has made travel seamless on highways across the country.
• One Nation, One Tax: GST has ended the complications in the tax system and has brought uniformity in indirect tax system.
• One Nation, One Power Grid, is ensuring adequate and continuous power availability in every part of the country.
• With One Nation, One Gas Grid, Seamless Gas Connectivity is being ensured of the parts where gas-based life and economy were absent.
• One Nation, One Health Insurance Scheme, that is, Ayushman Bharat through which millions of people from India are taking advantage anywhere in the country.
• Citizens moving from one place to another have got freedom from the trouble of making new ration cards through One Nation, One Ration Card.
• Similarly, the country is moving in the direction of One Nation, One Agriculture Market due to new agricultural reforms and arrangements like e-NAM
QUESTIONS (1-5)
Q.1 Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated country's first fully automated Metro on which of the following lines of Delhi Metro?
A. Yellow Line
B. Magenta Line: ANSWER
C. Pink Line
D. Blue Line
Q.2 Which of the following Metros is the Second oldest, largest and the busiest Metro in India?
A. Kolkata Metro
B. Jaipur Metro
C. Mumbai Metro
D. Delhi Metro: ANSWER
Q.3 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation limited which is a public sector company and responsible for the operation of Delhi Metro comes under the purview of which of the following ministries?
A. Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs: ANSWER
B. Ministry of Railways
C. Ministry of Rural Development
D. None of the above
Q.4 Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding the recently inaugurated country's first fully automated Metro or the Driverless Metro?
A. It is being inaugurated by Union railway Minister Piyush Goyal.
B. The service is inaugurated in the Yellow line of Delhi Metro.
C. Currently there are 18 cities in India which had the facility of Metro Rail: ANSWER
D. None of the above
Q.5 The idea of National Common Mobility Card service which emphasizes on One nation, one card system is floated by which of the following committees?
A. N.R Narayana Murthy Committee
B. Sudha Murthy Committee
C. Nandan Nilekani Committee: ANSWER
D. Vishal Sikka Committee
