NEW DELHI: For the second day in a row, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) closed the services at 17 stations on Thursday amid the ongoing CJP protest at Jantar Mantar.
Hundreds of office-goers and other commuters were forced to take longer and costlier routes to reach their destinations. Taking to X, DMRC said in a post, “Lok Kalyan Marg, Rajiv Chowk, Patel Chowk, Ramakrishna Ashram Marg, Barakhamba Road, Supreme Court, Seva Teerth, Janpath, Mandi House, Central Secretariat, ITO, Delhi Gate, Indraprastha, Khan Market, Jor Bagh and Shivaji Stadium Metro stations have been closed till further instructions.” Later, the DMRC also shut down services at the Jhandewalan metro station. The services on these 17 Metro stations would remain shut on Friday as well, said DMRC.
In the evening, the otherwise buzzing Rajiv Chowk Metro station had a very sombre appearance. Auto-rickshaw drivers also reported a sharp decline in passengers. Suresh, an auto driver around the Rajiv Chowk metro area, said, “I have been able to get just two rides since morning, and the situation has been similar for the past two days. Our daily income is suffering,” he said.
The streets of Connaught Place were filled with young protesters who were headed to Jantar Mantar, but none of them could get down at Rajiv Chowk due to the closure. “We got down at New Delhi Metro station and have been walking from there,” 18-year-old Vivaan from East Delhi said. “The commute is difficult, but it is nothing in front of the cause that we are standing up for,” he said.
Aniket, another commuter, said that due to the repeated closures, he is having to start one and a half hours earlier to reach the office on time.