The Delhi Metro has come up with new safety norms and a campaign in the wake of a recent incident in which a 35-year-old woman, Reena, succumbed to injuries on December 14, 2023. Her sari was caught in a metro train door and she was pulled along the platform. The woman is survived by her 12-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son.
The Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (CMRS) is holding an inquiry into the incident, where the DMRC confirms to provide a compensation of Rs 15 lakh to the next of kin of the passenger. In addition, the transporter has said it would bear the education expenses of her two children.
According to a senior official of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), digital screens are placed at major stations and inside the train with the new signage and awareness videos to educate commuters about precautions and ensure safety, news agency PTI reported.
This signage is similar to the sticker-type signage in both Hindi and English language that can be spotted inside the train coaches with a view in which a saree-clad woman urging passengers to ensure their clothing and belongings do not get caught in the doors of the train.
The videos also issue a warning that it is forbidden to close a door with your foot, bag, or any other object. According to the official cited by PTI, blockage of metro train doors is punishable by up to four years in prison, a fine of up to Rs 5,000, or both under Section 67 of the Delhi Metro Railways (Operation and Maintenance) Act, 2002.
The official said, "The DMRC already makes announcements in trains advising passengers to take care of their clothing or belongings while boarding or deboarding." The official added that in the wake of the recent incident, additional measures are also being taken to install such (safety message) signages on train doors and gates of Platform Screen Doors (PSDs) across the network, PTI Reported.
They also highlighted that about one to two such cases of commuters obstructing doors are observed by the DMRC in a month through random surveillance daily.
"A train door makes three attempts to shut. If it remains obstructed, the respective door remains in open condition and the train doesn't move. The door is closed again by a train operator or a train controller as applicable. If a door fails to close, then it is isolated," a DMRC official said earlier, as per PTI.