Faridabad Metro Corridor - Press Brief

The Badarpur – Escorts Mujesar (Faridabad) extension of the Delhi Metro will take the Metro to the satellite city of Faridabad in Haryana for the first time. This line is an extension of the currently operational violet line between ITO and Badarpur. The same section will expand up to Kashmere Gate on the other side from ITO. The corridor is also being extended up to Ballabhgarh from Faridabad.
Once fully operational, Line-6 will be running from Kashmere Gate to Ballabhgarh having a length of 46.60 KM and 34 Metro stations. Of these, five will be interchange stations namely, Kashmere Gate, Mandi House, Central Secretariat, Lajpat Nagar and Kalkaji Mandir Metro Station.
Corridor Highlights (Badarpur – Escorts Mujesar):
 Route Length : 13.875 Km
Completely elevated corridor    
Number of Stations : 9
 Names of stations: Sarai, NHPC Chowk, Mewala Maharajpur, Sector 28, Badkal Mor, Old Faridabad, Neelam Chowk Ajronda, Bata Chowk, Escorts Mujesar.

• The Depot for this section has been constructed near Sector 20 A in Faridabad and will be called Ajronda Depot. 

• Two more stations NCB colony and Ballabhgarh will also be added in this line by 2017. The length of the line will be increased by 3.2 kms.

Construction Highlights:

• The viaduct has been constructed using pre cast u-girders. These u-girders are 27 mtrs in length and were used because they allowed speedy construction as the pre cast girders could be brought to the site and launched in a short span of time. They also gave an aesthetic and sleek look to the entire viaduct.

• I-girders have been used at the Old Faridabad station as a third line is also diverting from that station towards the Ajronda depot.

• All the nine stations on the section have been provided with Foot Over Bridges (FOBs) so that commuters can easily reach the stations from the nearby areas. These FOBs are steel structures attached to the station buildings. All stations have been provided with lifts and escalators. Parking has been provided at stations depending upon the availability of land for station and property development areas as required.

• Since the 27 mtr long pre cast u girders had to be carried to the site, giant 400 and 500 tonne cranes were employed at these corridors so that the work could be expeditiously executed.   

Engineering Challenges:
Use of precast portal beams in Faridabad

• Near the Badarpur toll plaza towards NHPC Chowk, Faridabad, the Metro alignment of the under construction Badarpur – Faridabad section moves from the right of the road (National Highway) to the left.

• On this stretch, the alignment curves about five times on a 300 m length. To take the alignment through these curves, six portals have been built on the 15 m wide free way near the toll plaza that carries traffic which is not coming from the flyover. Construction of portals are generally done on site as they are generally very long and heavy in nature. In this case also, the initial plan was to construct the portal beams on site itself.

• However, on close study, it was found that the onsite casting of the beams would severely hamper traffic on this free way of the National Highway as it has to be blocked for at least six months.

• Therefore, for the first time in DMRC’s history, the decision to install precast portal beams was taken. These portal beams, each about 17 mtrs long and weighing between 205 to 225 mt were cast at the casting yard and brought on site for installation.

• Five Extended Pier Caps (EPCs) were also used for the first time on which the beams rested. These extra long pier caps were used so that the portal beams could easily rest on them. The EPCs were about 7.5-8.5 metres in size. The girder between the EPCs were 36.5 metres long.

• Two huge 500 mt cranes along with one 250 mt trailer were pressed into service for the installation of the six portal beams on 12 piers at a height of 12 mtrs. Had DMRC constructed cantilever piers instead of portal beams, it would have affected portions of the toll plaza, Foot Over Bridge and an NHAI building.    

• The work was done in close coordination with NHAI and Faridabad Traffic Police.

Shifting/modification of major electrical utilities including transmission lines
DMRC has shifted some major electrical lines and transformers to execute the construction work of the Faridabad corridor.
As part of this work, a 220 KV and a 66 KV Double Circuit transmission line were raised for the construction of viaduct and proposed NHPC Chowk station.  
Another 66 KV Double Circuit transmission lines which is running along Escorts Mujeswar Station was converted into underground by laying about 12 Km single core cables.  Shifting of electrical utilities in this Metro Corridor was a major challenge for DMRC Engineers due to:- 

• Almost all the 517 piers were affected and were infringing with 2/3rd circuits of Over Head 11 KV Electrical Lines and Under Ground cables.
• Space for shifting of electrical utilities was not available at number of locations. The electrical installations had to shifted after land was made available.   

• This was the first occasion in the history of DMRC when electrical lines were infringing throughout the corridor at all piers and station locations. 

Construction along the busy National Highway 2
To carry out construction using heavy machinery on the busy National Highway 2 was a major challenge. Traffic marshals had to be put up at all crucial intersections to ensure that both Heavy trucks, buses as well as auto rickshaws could pass along without any inconvenience.
DMRC also had to ensure that the five flyovers running parallel to the Metro construction were not affected in any manner. The work was done in close coordination with the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI).  
Station Design

• The alignment of metro corridor is along the 66 m wide on Mathura road.

• The stations are more visible from the Highway as compared to the typical metro stations constructed on the road. Therefore, utmost care has been taken to make the elevations of the stations to look good. The External Façade of the stations has been finished in combination of textured paint, ACP Cladding, Structural Glazing, Aluminum Windows and well crafted GRC Jalli work to give it vibrant look.

• The stations will have state of the art signage system  having Powder coated Aluminum extruded section box, polycarbonate sheets and vinyl pasted letters and graphic with LED light fixtures wherever it is illuminated.

All stations and depot installed with solar power plants
DMRC has installed solar power generation facilities in all the stations and depot of the Badarpur – Faridabad Metro corridor for partial fulfillment of the energy requirements of that corridor.

These solar power plants with a total generation capacity of 1.9 MWp, have been installed under RESCO (Renewable Energy Supply Company) Model, wherein the capital cost has been invested by the Solar Developer and DMRC has signed the Power Purchase Agreement for 25 years. DMRC shall only pay Energy charges for the actual energy generated.

The power generated will be used for the lighting and other auxiliary requirements of the station and depot buildings.The power Receiving Sub Station (RSS) of the Faridabad corridor has already been developed as a green building with a 50 kWp solar plant, rain water harvesting and constructed wet land type of Sewage treatment plant facilities.

In total, DMRC has so far commissioned solar power facilities with generation capacity of approx. 2.8 MWp with plants at Dwarka Sector 21, Anand Vihar, Pragati Maidan, Metro Enclave, Yamuna bank station, Yamuna bank depot, Faridabad RSS, ITO, Ajronda depot and the Faridabad metro stations.

As per its solar mission, DMRC will create facilities for the generation of 20 MWp out of which work has been awarded for 11 MWp so far.  DMRC is committed to install solar plants with generation capacity of 50 MWp in its existing and upcoming network.

Faridabad Metro to be powered by Green Sub Station
Delhi Metro’s first ever ‘green’ electrical Receiving Sub Station (RSS) with a host of eco friendly features has been constructed at Faridabad to cater to the energy requirements of the upcoming Badarpur – Faridabad Metro corridor. DMRC has already applied for its "Green Building" certification to the Indian Green Building Council. 
The RSS, constructed at Sector 46, Faridabad will provide power to the 13.875 km long Badarpur – Escorts Mujesar (Faridabad) elevated corridor, which is nearing completion.
The sub station has a series of eco-friendly features, which makes it the first ever ‘green’ RSS of the Delhi Metro network. Solar power panels with capacity of 50 KWp have been installed at the RSS. The power generated will cater to the requirements of the RSS building and the remaining power will be used for the stations electrical load.
A Wetland Sewage Treatment Plant has also been constructed from where; retreated water will be reused for horticulture and sanitary purposes. Water meters have also been installed to monitor the consumption of water. All the indoor and outdoor lighting has been done with LEDs to ensure minimal power consumption. CO2 censors have also been installed at the control room to maintain good quality air. 
Provision for Rain Water Harvesting has been done inside the RSS premises for the optimal utilization of rain water. Low CFC refrigerant and Inverter Compressor type VRV air conditioning system, which is more environment friendly and consumes less energy, has been installed inside the premises.    
Landscaping full of greenery has been done not only to beautify the premises but also to promote greenery in the area. The construction work of this RSS was started in September, 2013 and was completed in February this year.  
This sub-station will receive power from the Sector-46, Grid sub station. At Present, the Delhi Metro network is served by 12 Receiving Sub-stations spread across the National Capital Region.