DMRC starts tunnelling work for last leg of Dwarka-Dhansa line

NEW DELHI: Taking another step to cover more areas under its ever-growing network, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation on Thursday started work on its last leg of the Dwarka-Najafgarh-Dhansa Stand section.

Once this section of the Grey Line is made operational, Dwarka, Najafgarh and other nearby rural areas in western Delhi will be more accessible for commuters. Currently, travelling to these areas take time as they are not that well connected with public transport.  

The tunnelling work will be completed by September this year. Currently, the Metro corridor from Dwarka to Najafgarh is about 4.29 km long, while the new underground stretch will be an extension of the Grey Line. 

According to a DMRC official, a Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) will be used in the third phase of the Grey Line, also known as Line 9, to bore a 700 metre- long tunnel between Najafgarh and Dhansa Stand on the up line. The TBM will be later used on the down line.

“The total distance between Najafgarh and Dhansa Stand is 1.2 km. The entire stretch is underground. While 700 metres will be constructed using the TBM, the rest will be done by the Cut and Cover technology in which excavation is done for underground construction and then the area is covered again,” the DMRC said in a statement.    

Work for this section was formally awarded in late 2017 and the target date for completion is December 2020. On the Dwarka-Najafgarh section, over 90 per cent of construction work is complete and passenger services are expected to start by September this year.  

Metro extension:

• 4.29 km length of the Dwarka-Najafgarh corridor of Grey Line.

• September 2019 expected completion of the work.

• 700 metre of the stretch is underground from Najafgarh to  Dhansa Stand.