Hello everyone,

Here are some recent construction pictures from the Airport Express line.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshowpics/4753690.cms

Regards,
Ashish

Urban refugees *Still keeping faith
*These weather-beaten nooks and crannies of privacy and dignity will be
pulled down for the progress of the Metro.


http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/slideshow_urban-refugees_1272526-3


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks Ashish!

I was born and brought up in Delhi - lived there for 25 years. I now live in the
US and miss Delhi.

Photographs like these are an amazing way to reconnect with the city and be
proud of the Delhi Metro.

Keep posting such photos - it helps people like me to get a glimpse of the rapid
pace of development in Delhi (and India).


Best,

Anupam




________________________________
From: Ashish Vashisht <ashishvashisht@...>
To: Delhi Metro <delhimetro@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, 8 July, 2009 6:33:42 AM
Subject: [delhimetro] Delhi Airport Express Line - pictures






Hello everyone,

Here are some recent construction pictures from the Airport Express line.

http://economictime s.indiatimes. com/articleshowp ics/4753690. cms

Regards,
Ashish





       See the Web's breaking stories, chosen by people like you. Check out
Yahoo! Buzz. http://in.buzz.yahoo.com/

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi Anupam,

I'm glad you enjoyed the photos. If you are interested you may want to search
the archives for similar links to pictures which have been posted by other
members on the forum. Also, you may want to check out the photo galleries on the
DMRC website:

http://www.delhimetrorail.com/commuters/photo_gallery01.html

Regards,
Ashish

--- On Thu, 7/9/09, CHORA <chora_4@...> wrote:

> From: CHORA <chora_4@...>
> Subject: Re: [delhimetro] Delhi Airport Express Line - pictures
> To: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Thursday, July 9, 2009, 11:06 PM
> Thanks Ashish!
>
> I was born and brought up in Delhi - lived there for 25
> years. I now live in the US and miss Delhi.
>
> Photographs like these are an amazing way to reconnect with
> the city and be proud of the Delhi Metro.
>
> Keep posting such photos - it helps people like me to get a
> glimpse of the rapid pace of development in Delhi (and
> India).
>
>
> Best,
>
> Anupam
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Ashish Vashisht <ashishvashisht@...>
> To: Delhi Metro <delhimetro@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, 8 July, 2009 6:33:42 AM
> Subject: [delhimetro] Delhi Airport Express Line -
> pictures
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Hello everyone,
>
> Here are some recent construction pictures from the Airport
> Express line.
>
> http://economictime s.indiatimes. com/articleshowp
> ics/4753690. cms
>
> Regards,
> Ashish
>
>
>    
>
>
>       See the Web's breaking stories,
> chosen by people like you. Check out Yahoo! Buzz. http://in.buzz.yahoo.com/
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> On the web:
> http://www.irfca.org/users/delhimetro/Yahoo! Groups
> Links
>
>
>     mailto:delhimetro-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
>
>
>

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/5-killed-in-metro-bridge-collapse-in-delhi/488\
336/1

I find it totally unbelievable that there has been yet another accident on the
Metro with five dead this time. In general, my impression of the Metro's
construction during my last visit to Delhi was that peeople seem to be very
relaxed about site management, cleanliness, etc., and it is not a big stretch
from there to be relaxed about safety as well. There is absolutely no reason why
we should have accidents of this kind in this day and age. Around the world
construction projects of the same scale are able to complete works without a
single fatality. We've now had several on the Metro.

Shashi

I am very concerned about what happened in Delhi Metro today. Even the official
response had been not much more than that of passing the buck. Officials appear
to be blaming the contractor and my personal interactions with many of them tend
to convey an impression that DMRC is pushing them for cost and programme issues
forcing them to cut corners.
Do not know what the exact facts are but there certainly seem to be a systematic
failure. Instead of the blame game somebody should carefully look into safety
and hazard aspects and put appropriate procedural mechanisms so that such a
horrible accident never happens again.

Alok

--- On Sun, 7/12/09, Shashi Verma <shashi_verma@...> wrote:

From: Shashi Verma <shashi_verma@...>
Subject: [delhimetro] New accident on Metro
To: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, July 12, 2009, 5:18 PM
























       http://www.indianex press.com/ news/5-killed- in-metro- bridge-collapse-
in-delhi/ 488336/1



I find it totally unbelievable that there has been yet another accident on the
Metro with five dead this time. In general, my impression of the Metro's
construction during my last visit to Delhi was that peeople seem to be very
relaxed about site management, cleanliness, etc., and it is not a big stretch
from there to be relaxed about safety as well. There is absolutely no reason why
we should have accidents of this kind in this day and age. Around the world
construction projects of the same scale are able to complete works without a
single fatality. We've now had several on the Metro.



Shashi

































[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

"When overconfidence prevails,  complacency sets in, leading to oversight of
some matters which are vital. Having seen some photographs, I can say *prima
facie*, as a Civil-Structural Engineer, the girder bearing piece may not
have been properly cured leading to attainment of poor strength and when
loaded, its break and collapse.

On the other hand, that portion may not have been concreted with the
specified concrete mix which essentially specifies quantity of given cement,
stone aggregates, sand, water quantity and any admixture and also
temperature range for mixing and pouring. Slip up here and you will not get
concrete of the desired strength.

It is unlikely that there was a design fault as DMRC PRO was stating on the
TV. We see several of such pillars and girder bearing piece in good state.
Slip ups can also occur if the engineer on duty has not been made fully
aware of importance and methods of executing every single operation of
construction and it is assumed that he would have picked up while at site.

I also suspect that the pillar top may have been constructed during the hot
days of Delhi summer and necessary steps of prompt curing process may not
have been initiated in time."

Wherever one is, follow the detailed drawings and specifications of
construction and follow every aspect of safety during construction and I
find no reason for any such accidents. This is what will ensure that the
Mumbai Metro too can have enviable record of Delhi Metro except of its past
year or so when accidents have occurred at construction sites at frequent
interval."

Sudhir Badami
Civil-Structural Enginee and Transportation Analyst

--
Regards

Sudhir Badami

+91 98216 85072
Email ID: badami@..., badami@..., sudhirbadami@...

If you have received this under Bcc, it is to prevent email getting
cluttered. Also, if you prefer to unsubscribe please Write "UNSUBSCRIBE" in
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Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail. .


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hello everyone,

I was indeed saddened to hear about the tragedy at the Metro site on Sunday, but
I was not entirely surprised. Back in November when there was an accident at the
Nangloi site
(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/2_sleeping_men_buried_alive_at_Metro_s\
ite/articleshow/3736054.cms), it was then the latest amongst a string of
accidents at the Metro construction site. What is quite distressing is that even
this string of accidents was not enough to prevent a recurrence.

Here a brief time line of previous accidents which has been shared with the
group before.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/Delhi_Metro_Rail_accidents_-_a_time_lin\
e/articleshow/3615712.cms

Whatever the reason for this latest accident, I believe the DMRC, the
contractors, and everyone else involved forgot the old Hindi adage which they
had been preaching all along: "Saawdhani Hathi, Durghatna Ghathi" or
सावधानी हटी, द�र�घटना घटी!(the moment
you are careless, there is bound to be an accident)

I have collected a selection of video clips from the BBC and the NDTV which
might shed some light about what happened.

Regards,
Ashish

Metro bridge collapses in Delhi (BBC)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8146362.stm

Sreedharan resigns as Delhi Metro chief
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134681

Metro accident a setback for Games 2010?
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134669

Birthday shock for Sreedharan
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134670

Analysing the Metro accident
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134671

'Metro Man' takes the fall
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134722

DMRC staff shocked over Sreedharan's resignation
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134704

Ashish

What this timeline shows is an organisation where safety is not really a serious
concern. There are many practices followed here that would be very questionable
- cranes overswinging over heavy traffic, site perimeters being very tight
resulting in heavy machinery being operated through heavy traffic, etc. When I
was in India in December I was struck that there was a crane backing up without
any lights or human guidance right on to a major road in Noida during the night
time, this too just round a corner where it was barely visible. This is not a
sign of an organisation that takes safety seriously. We've also had previous
incidents of maintenance workers being struck by trains in service.

With all due respect to Mr. Sreedharan (and he very rightly deserves it), this
organisation needs a renewed focus on the basics. My sense is that they have
gotten carried away with all the public adulation and the quality of the work
has suffered as a result.

Perhaps some other group members could comment on this - the preparation for the
Commonwealth Games seems to be behind in many areas. Certainly, on the bus side
they are much further behind compared to where they should have been.

Shashi

--- In delhimetro@yahoogroups.com, Ashish Vashisht <ashishvashisht@...> wrote:
>
>
>

Why DMRC is the target? DMRC is a client and it is in reality the wrong
practices and loose attitude of Engineers from design and build side who
must be held accountable. In India responsibility is not pinned down that is
the problem. Mr. Shreedharan for a gentleman he is, has still taken as this
as his failure to control and resigned. But what about basics? Method
statements for work execution are to be prepared and followed by the
contractor. Any approval as per the contracts does not absolve the
contractor of his responsibilities. Such contractors must be shown the place
they deserve - the jail like in UAE.



When we did the Delhi Metros first underground station we were proud design
and build contractors to have a ISO certification for health and safety with
a good overall record. This was also a feather in DMRC's cap.



In Dubai where we are doing a metro project - in a case like this nobody
blames the client but the contractor is held responsible and punished for
negligence.

There is no difference in degrees or individual capabilities in Delhi or
Dubai - but somehow perfection by the engineers seems to be ruled by their
attention to the work due to consequences they may face.



The further toppling of the cranes on accident site proves the hurry and bad
calculations for a work to be carried thru a proper method statement. Even
the deaths of innocent public was not able to teach a lesson to erring
contractor.



Satyakam Garg

Architect, Dubai



From: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com [mailto:delhimetro@yahoogroups.com] On
Behalf Of Shashi Verma
Sent: Monday, July 13, 2009 5:15 PM
To: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [delhimetro] Re: New accident on Metro








Ashish

What this timeline shows is an organisation where safety is not really a
serious concern. There are many practices followed here that would be very
questionable - cranes overswinging over heavy traffic, site perimeters being
very tight resulting in heavy machinery being operated through heavy
traffic, etc. When I was in India in December I was struck that there was a
crane backing up without any lights or human guidance right on to a major
road in Noida during the night time, this too just round a corner where it
was barely visible. This is not a sign of an organisation that takes safety
seriously. We've also had previous incidents of maintenance workers being
struck by trains in service.

With all due respect to Mr. Sreedharan (and he very rightly deserves it),
this organisation needs a renewed focus on the basics. My sense is that they
have gotten carried away with all the public adulation and the quality of
the work has suffered as a result.

Perhaps some other group members could comment on this - the preparation for
the Commonwealth Games seems to be behind in many areas. Certainly, on the
bus side they are much further behind compared to where they should have
been.

Shashi

--- In delhimetro@yahoogroups.com <mailto:delhimetro%40yahoogroups.com> ,
Ashish Vashisht <ashishvashisht@...> wrote:
>
>
>





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I totally agree with Satyakam Garg, and am glad he has mentioned it. It's the
corruption of the engineers and contractors in India, not DMRC! Life in India is
cheap!

Best Regards



Mac LAL



07828 953 118

--- On Mon, 7/13/09, Satyakam Garg <satyakamgarg@...> wrote:

From: Satyakam Garg <satyakamgarg@...>
Subject: RE: [delhimetro] Re: New accident on Metro
To: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, July 13, 2009, 1:34 PM

















       Why DMRC is the target? DMRC is a client and it is in reality the wrong

practices and loose attitude of Engineers from design and build side who

must be held accountable. In India responsibility is not pinned down that is

the problem. Mr. Shreedharan for a gentleman he is, has still taken as this

as his failure to control and resigned. But what about basics? Method

statements for work execution are to be prepared and followed by the

contractor. Any approval as per the contracts does not absolve the

contractor of his responsibilities. Such contractors must be shown the place

they deserve - the jail like in UAE.



When we did the Delhi Metros first underground station we were proud design

and build contractors to have a ISO certification for health and safety with

a good overall record. This was also a feather in DMRC's cap.



In Dubai where we are doing a metro project - in a case like this nobody

blames the client but the contractor is held responsible and punished for

negligence.



There is no difference in degrees or individual capabilities in Delhi or

Dubai - but somehow perfection by the engineers seems to be ruled by their

attention to the work due to consequences they may face.



The further toppling of the cranes on accident site proves the hurry and bad

calculations for a work to be carried thru a proper method statement. Even

the deaths of innocent public was not able to teach a lesson to erring

contractor.



Satyakam Garg



Architect, Dubai



From: delhimetro@yahoogro ups.com [mailto:delhimetro@yahoogro ups.com] On

Behalf Of Shashi Verma

Sent: Monday, July 13, 2009 5:15 PM

To: delhimetro@yahoogro ups.com

Subject: [delhimetro] Re: New accident on Metro



Ashish



What this timeline shows is an organisation where safety is not really a

serious concern. There are many practices followed here that would be very

questionable - cranes overswinging over heavy traffic, site perimeters being

very tight resulting in heavy machinery being operated through heavy

traffic, etc. When I was in India in December I was struck that there was a

crane backing up without any lights or human guidance right on to a major

road in Noida during the night time, this too just round a corner where it

was barely visible. This is not a sign of an organisation that takes safety

seriously. We've also had previous incidents of maintenance workers being

struck by trains in service.



With all due respect to Mr. Sreedharan (and he very rightly deserves it),

this organisation needs a renewed focus on the basics. My sense is that they

have gotten carried away with all the public adulation and the quality of

the work has suffered as a result.



Perhaps some other group members could comment on this - the preparation for

the Commonwealth Games seems to be behind in many areas. Certainly, on the

bus side they are much further behind compared to where they should have

been.



Shashi



--- In delhimetro@yahoogro ups.com <mailto:delhimetro% 40yahoogroups. com> ,

Ashish Vashisht <ashishvashisht@ ...> wrote:

>

>

>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]































[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hello Shashi,

Apparently there has been another accident on the site. This time three cranes
trying to move the girder collapsed. Here are some dramatic videos. Clearly
there were some more injuries - one injured man is shown carried away and there
could well be others. The slipshod manner in which such heavy loads are lifted
is obvious.

Another mishap at Metro accident site (NDTV)
http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134753

After Metro bridge collapse, now 3 cranes topple (TOI)
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/videoshow/4771712.cms

Satyakam and Mac, both DMRC as well as the contractors (Gammon) are equally
responsible. For Gammon, this is not the first time. There has been an accident
in Hyderabad where a flyover fell on Gammon's watch. That and many other
accidents at the Delhi Metro sites should have been a wake up call for DMRC,
which is the regulatory authority overseeing the construction.

Regards,
Ashish

Hi All,

Notwithstanding clear instructions or method statements to workers on how to
address the job at hand properly, has anybody any idea if labor standards
are being properly adhered to?

if yes, what are the basic requirements? are levels of pay to workers
ensured?

It appears like the wage an worker gets on one of these sites is about a
100US a month and I expect this is the same across the board on DMRC
projects.

so would it be safe to say, you get what you pay for? a few more dropped
girders and toppled cranes shouldn't surprise us really, should they? or
can the ingenuity of the contractor be deemed enough to mitigate this?

I dread to think, how these accidents would be avoided on the upcoming
Mumbai metro, a city where not-so-cheap lives even are lost quite cheaply on
a routine basis.

Regards

Anand

On Mon, Jul 13, 2009 at 9:21 PM, Ashish Vashisht
<ashishvashisht@...>wrote:

>
>
>
> Hello Shashi,
>
> Apparently there has been another accident on the site. This time three
> cranes trying to move the girder collapsed. Here are some dramatic videos.
> Clearly there were some more injuries - one injured man is shown carried
> away and there could well be others. The slipshod manner in which such heavy
> loads are lifted is obvious.
>
> Another mishap at Metro accident site (NDTV)
> http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1134753
>
> After Metro bridge collapse, now 3 cranes topple (TOI)
> http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/videoshow/4771712.cms
>
> Satyakam and Mac, both DMRC as well as the contractors (Gammon) are equally
> responsible. For Gammon, this is not the first time. There has been an
> accident in Hyderabad where a flyover fell on Gammon's watch. That and many
> other accidents at the Delhi Metro sites should have been a wake up call for
> DMRC, which is the regulatory authority overseeing the construction.
>
> Regards,
> Ashish
>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Satyakam (& others)

The issue here is one of where the safety responsibility lies. There should be
no doubt that the responsibility eventually lies with DMRC. These works are
happening because the DMRC is the procuring organisation that is asking for
these things to be done. I am not familiar with all the health and safety
legislation in India but somehwere there has to be a definition of a competent
body responsible for oversight of the works and in my mind that has to be the
DMRC.

I agree fully that there are issues with Gammon and possibly other contractors,
their sub-contractors and other staff. The method statements need to be written
by the party doing the work (in this case Gammon, or its sub-contractors) but
unless DMRC has delegated, without regard to competence, the approval of these
method statements to the contractors it is accounable for these safety lapses.
If, on the other hand, the DMRC has delegated to the contractors despite their
poor safety record then there is an even bigger issue.

There ought to be no doubt that the party that holds public funds and the
planning rights to build the Metro is DMRC and, consequently, there should be no
doubt that the DMRC is accountable eventually, irrespective of what its
contractors do. That is not to absolve the contractors but just to say that DMRC
cannot shirk responsibility for safety.

DMRC's media handling of this has been even worse - the statement from its PRO
that there was a "design issue" with the piers brings into question the
soundness of all elevated sections of the tracks as, to the naked eye, they all
seem to have the same design.

The further accident yesterday, as in Ashish's post, is only further evidence of
a lack of safety consciousness in the company.

Shashi

--- In delhimetro@yahoogroups.com, Anand Dwarkanath <adwark@...> wrote:

From the safety point of view and also the fact that it is JICA (earlier
JBIC) which is funding (the Delhi Metro accident stretch) as well it is
critical to put adequate pressure on the authorities

does the issue of mandatory monthly assessment and evaluation apply from
JICA or from MoUD (GoI) can be ascertained

This kind of secrecy cannt be hidden behind arrogance when it comes to
workers safety and human lives

TESTING and EIA for Metro projects must be made public

Vinay Baindur


On Wed, Jul 15, 2009 at 11:16 AM, Arun Padaki <arunpadaki@...> wrote:

>
>
> Couple of observations -
>
> 1.  comments of Shri.Chavan - it is this arrogance, rigidity and
> insensitivity that has casued most of the problems.  Not just BMRCL, the
> state Government too is to be blamed for this.  BMRCL cannot act like this
> without the State Government's backing.
> 2.  If tests were done in 2003, this was the year with very less rainfall
> over the last decade;  if tests are re-done, results should differ
>
> Regards,
> Arun
>
> On Wed, Jul 15, 2009 at 10:23 AM, vinay sreenivasa <
> vinay.sreenivasa@...> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>>
>> sorry, here's the latter part of the article -
>>
>>   No tests since 2003
>>
>> Continued from page one
>>
>> What's surprising is the fact that the BMRCL officials have not even
>> presented the EIA report to the Japan Bank of International Corporation
>> (JBIC), which had asked for the report and cleared Rs1,795 crore under a
>> special rate of interest for the project.
>> DNA found that the EIA for the project had been conducted just once in
>> 2003, instead of the mandatory monthly assessment, by Bangalore University's
>> environmental science department.
>> As per the 2003 EIA report, the Metro's first phase was to be completed
>> within 2007. But it is still under construction, which required monthly EIA
>> studies to be continued.
>> But after 2003, when only one EIA was conducted, no further reports were
>> prepared.
>> "We had submitted 300-page report to BMRCL and made a part public but we
>> do not know whether it has been implemented now and up to what extent," said
>> Somashekhar, head of Bangalore University's environmental science
>> department.
>> Experts say Bangalore's environment could have undergone drastic changes
>> since 2003, which makes it mandatory for such tests to be continued.
>> The wind velocity and intensity should also be re-tested as many high-rise
>> buildings are being constructed near Metro since the project's conception.
>>
>>
>> The earth does not belong to man; man belongs to the earth.
>> - Chief Seattle, Chief of the Suquamish Indians
>>
>> --- On *Wed, 15/7/09, vinay sreenivasa <vinay.sreenivasa@...>*wrote:
>>
>>
>> From: vinay sreenivasa <vinay.sreenivasa@...>
>> Subject: [HasiruUsiru] Key Metro safety data hidden from public
>> To: "hasiru usiru" <hasiruusiru@yahoogroups.com>
>> Date: Wednesday, 15 July, 2009, 10:13 AM
>>
>>       http://epaper. dnaindia. com/dnabangalore /epapermain.
>> aspx?queryed= 9&username=&useremailid=&parenteditioncode= 9&eddate=7/15/
>> 2009
>>
>>
>> Key Metro safety data hidden from public
>>
>> Experts doubt BMRCL's claim of fool-proof safety tests. DNA, which has
>> been mapping Metro's progress, tells you why
>>
>> Bosky Khanna. Bangalore
>>
>> What happened in Delhi could happen here too. The Delhi Metro Rail mishap
>> that killed six workers on Sunday has raised serious doubts about whether
>> the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has conducted
>> fool-proof safety tests on the Metro rail project.
>> The BMRCL, which says it has conducted the tests, claims it has kept these
>> away from the public domain but experts doubt the claim. As per 2004 norms
>> of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), it is mandatory for agencies and
>> contractors constructing high-rise buildings or elevated structures, as in
>> the metro rail project, to conduct wind analysis and seismic tests.
>> But consultants and citizens doubt whether these tests have been conducted
>> for Bangalore's elevated metro.
>> According to MN Sreehari, who is the advisor to the state government for
>> traffic, transport and infrastructure and an expert member ABIDe member, the
>> metro runs on electric power at a height of 3,000 feet (990 metres) above
>> sea level. Strong winds can cause the metro wires to collide, which could
>> cause cracks in pillars. But in the absence of convincing tests, chances of
>> the structure collapsing is more because the girders and pier bearings
>> attached to it will vibrate.
>> Not just that. The environment assessment impact (EIA) for the project has
>> been done just once, which was six years back. This should be done on a
>> monthly basis. Sreehari says even consultants, who are part of the BMRCL
>> committee, have been denied the right to these test reports. This makes the
>> entire claim doubtful, he says.
>> But BMRCL's chief spokesperson BL Yeshwanth Chavan says the designs and
>> test reports cannot be made public. "Reports have been prepared with public
>> money and are confidential documents. Why should people be apprehensive
>> about it? Do they mean that BMRCL officials are not experts? The test
>> results can be seen post construction. ''
>>
>>
>> The earth does not belong to man; man belongs to the earth.
>> - Chief Seattle, Chief of the Suquamish Indians
>> ------------------------------
>> Looking for local information? Find it on Yahoo!
Local<http://in.rd.yahoo.com/tagline_local_1/*http://in.local.yahoo.com/>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> Yahoo! recommends that you upgrade to the new and safer Internet Explorer
>>
8<http://in.rd.yahoo.com/tagline_ie8_1/*http://downloads.yahoo.com/in/internetex\
plorer/>.
>>
>>
>>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

The Hindustan today (Delhi, 15 July 9) carried an article on Metro Safety being
worse-off in China and how there have been many more accidents in Chinese Metro
projects than in Delhi. Is this an attempt to divert attention away from DMRCs
slipping safety standards?


       Yahoo! recommends that you upgrade to the new and safer Internet Explorer
8. http://downloads.yahoo.com/in/internetexplorer/

Interesting. Not sure why we should be comparing ourselves with China, where
life is valued even less than it is in India. We could cite many other examples
- the new terminal at Heathrow airport was finished last year without any
fatalities, etc., etc. About four years ago I had a death on one of my
worksites. This was followed up by immediate investigation with reports within
24 hours - turned out the man had a heart attack while having dinner in the site
cafeteria. Nevertheless, I had no liberty to do anything other than do a full
investigation and report to the health and safety regulators within 24 hours.
What a contrast to the way these incidents on the Metro have been handled.

Shashi


--- In delhimetro@yahoogroups.com, Mohit Shukla <shuk718@...> wrote:
>
>
> The Hindustan today (Delhi, 15 July 9) carried an article on Metro

Right, our benchmarks should be high.

In any case comparison is not needed, zero accident should be the lower
benchmark.



Regards,

Akhilesh Singh



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi David,

I have uploaded the photo on the group website as you requested. The path is as
follows:

Go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/delhimetro
Then: Photos > Miscellaneous > Metro-Negligence

To be honest I will not be surprised if there are many other such unsafe
situations on the Metro every day. Instilling a culture of safety require
tremendous discipline and painstaking efforts to reinforce best practices and
shun unsafe ones. Lack of safety is a slippery slope on which our countrymen
have been on before, many times. I appreciate your efforts to highlight such
incidents. Will anyone from the media or DMRC take notice?

Regards,
Ashish

--- On Wed, 7/15/09, David Kothamasi <kothamasi@...> wrote:

> From: David Kothamasi <kothamasi@...>
> Subject: Metro Safety in operations

> Hi Ashish:
> I would like to bring to the notice of everyone on the
> forum how safety is ignored even in metro operations, not
> just constructions. I have attached a picture taken by me on
> the Rajiv Chowk station on line 2, I am not aware how to
> upload pictures on the forum. Therefore, I request you to
> upload the pic on the forum. I had sent the pic to Mr. Anuj
> Dayal, PRO but there was no response from him. The pic was
> of April 11(or 12), 2009 and at 6.20 pm.
>  
> Notice how the train has opened the doors even though
> it has not been aligned properly with the grills on the
> platforms. Thankfully no  serious mishap took place.
> But with this kind of laxity it is a disaster waiting to
> happen.
>  
> Best wishes
> David

Hello friends,

Sorry for off-topic post but this may be relevant for Metro news buffs like me
and don't have access to the printed news papers.

If you are interested in reading what is being printed in the Indian news papers
every day, you could follow these e-papers. These are exact copies of the daily
printed news papers, not just in Delhi but other metros as well. Not all of
these news clippings are available on the regular news websites. Also, the
images and graphics are a bonus. I've been following the news of the Metro
accident here without missing a beat.

Hindustan Times
http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/default.aspx

Times of India
http://epaper.timesofindia.com//?

Regards,
Ashish

Hi,

Did you know that you have done an illegal act? Sorry. I am not saying this
but the Delhi Metro says it! PHOTOGRAPHY IS PROHIBITED on any Delhi Metro
premises :)

I am totally against this prohibition. In fact if we were free to photograph
the Metro, I am sure many such lapses would be exposed to the public and
Metro would become safer.

Is photography allowed on other Metros across the world? In case it is
allowed, why are we so paranoid of letting people take photos on the Metro?

Rajeev.

Spike Milligan<http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/s/spike_milligan.html>
- "All I ask is the chance to prove that money can't make me happy."

On Wed, Jul 15, 2009 at 21:39, Ashish Vashisht <ashishvashisht@...>wrote:

>
>
>
> Hi David,
>
> I have uploaded the photo on the group website as you requested. The path
> is as follows:
>
> Go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/delhimetro
> Then: Photos > Miscellaneous > Metro-Negligence
>
> To be honest I will not be surprised if there are many other such unsafe
> situations on the Metro every day. Instilling a culture of safety require
> tremendous discipline and painstaking efforts to reinforce best practices
> and shun unsafe ones. Lack of safety is a slippery slope on which our
> countrymen have been on before, many times. I appreciate your efforts to
> highlight such incidents. Will anyone from the media or DMRC take notice?
>
> Regards,
> Ashish
>
> --- On Wed, 7/15/09, David Kothamasi
<kothamasi@...<kothamasi%40yahoo.com>>
> wrote:
>
> > From: David Kothamasi <kothamasi@... <kothamasi%40yahoo.com>>
> > Subject: Metro Safety in operations
>
> > Hi Ashish:
> > I would like to bring to the notice of everyone on the
> > forum how safety is ignored even in metro operations, not
> > just constructions. I have attached a picture taken by me on
> > the Rajiv Chowk station on line 2, I am not aware how to
> > upload pictures on the forum. Therefore, I request you to
> > upload the pic on the forum. I had sent the pic to Mr. Anuj
> > Dayal, PRO but there was no response from him. The pic was
> > of April 11(or 12), 2009 and at 6.20 pm.
> >
> > Notice how the train has opened the doors even though
> > it has not been aligned properly with the grills on the
> > platforms. Thankfully no  serious mishap took place.
> > But with this kind of laxity it is a disaster waiting to
> > happen.
> >
> > Best wishes
> > David
>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hello Rajeev,

Photography is allowed on the Delhi Metro but one has to take permission from
DMRC. In 2003, a group of us from this forum had permission to visit Metro sites
and take pictures. The only exception was taking a picture with a flash pointed
towards an arriving train (lest it distracts the driver) and taking a picture
inside a coach. I am not sure if prohibiting photography really makes the Metro
safer but it does keep the Metro Security staff busy trying to catch those who
violate the rule. The no-photography rule was relaxed at the airports a few
years ago. Perhaps the same could be done for the Metros.

I've never been stopped from taking pictures on any Metro anywhere in the world
and I've been on quite a few of them. The only incident I remember is when I was
taking a picture of the wonderful architecture at a Washington DC Metro station.
I was so engrossed in my photography that I did not notice that a policeman just
stood behind me for a couple of minutes. He politely asked me what I was doing
and when I mentioned that I was taking the picture of the roof of the station,
he gestured me to carry on doing what I was doing. By the way, this was just few
days after September 11, 2001, so surveillance was very high in DC.

Regards,
Ashish

Here is a recent interview of Mr. Sreedharan with Times of India. He talks at
some length about contractors and about the state of infrastructure development
in India.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS-City-Delhi-I-wont-quit-before-the-Games-\
come-what-may-Sreedharan/articleshow/4781945.cms

Regards,
Ashish

Here's the video version of a similar interview, this time with Shekhar Gupta of
Indian Express, on Walk the Talk on NDTV.

http://www.ndtv.com/news/videos/video_player.php?id=1136030

Couple of things I noticed which the members on the forum may want to comment
on:

1. This accident was not totally avoidable.
2. Accidents like this have happened everywhere. Mr. Sreedharan specifically
cited England, Japan, Germany, Korea and China.

Regards,
Ashish

>
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS-City-Delhi-I-wont-quit-before-the-Games-\
come-what-may-Sreedharan/articleshow/4781945.cms

Hi

Bringing your attention to this news article.

Full Story can be found at
http://epaper.dnaindia.com/epapermain.aspx?edorsup=Main&queryed=9&querypage=11&b\
oxid=31570000&parentid=96396&eddate=07/17/2009

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =
For news updates throughout the day, visit www.dnaindia.com
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =


All this IMO strangely enough ties up with my earlier e-mail about
uncompetitive wages in relation to the private sector.

In Mr. E.Sreedharan's interview he talks about a lot poaching going on at
levels of workers, masons etc and a serious shortage of them.

As an observation, the Singapore metro projects use Indian workers in large
no.'s.

Also, one other thing that seems a bit of a lax statement in the interview,
is where he says, that the company chooses the lowest bidders.
I can understand that this might well be the case, but as a policy they
should consider Quality of the bid over price and reserve the right to
excercise right in awarding the contract.

Cheers

Anand
  **


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I think this (key people leaving) more than anything else has contributed to the
accidents in the METRO.

Something had to be different, the execution during the 1st phase was reported
to be excellent. At the end of the day, it all boils down to the calibre of the
people.

Dont know if Shri Shreedharan has also changed. Maybe he is not that hands on
anymore - or got overconfident with the success ? Somebody looking into this
would be well advised to investigate the difference between the execution of the
two phases.



________________________________
From: Anand Dwarkanath <adwark@...>
To: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, July 17, 2009 7:43:14 PM
Subject: [delhimetro] Fwd: DNA E-Paper : Talent deserted DMRC just before Delhi
mishap

 
Hi

Bringing your attention to this news article.

Full Story can be found at
http://epaper. dnaindia. com/epapermain. aspx?edorsup= Main&queryed=
9&querypage= 11&boxid= 31570000& parentid= 96396&eddate= 07/17/2009

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =
For news updates throughout the day, visit www.dnaindia. com
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =

All this IMO strangely enough ties up with my earlier e-mail about
uncompetitive wages in relation to the private sector.

In Mr. E.Sreedharan' s interview he talks about a lot poaching going on at
levels of workers, masons etc and a serious shortage of them.

As an observation, the Singapore metro projects use Indian workers in large
no.'s.

Also, one other thing that seems a bit of a lax statement in the interview,
is where he says, that the company chooses the lowest bidders.
I can understand that this might well be the case, but as a policy they
should consider Quality of the bid over price and reserve the right to
excercise right in awarding the contract.

Cheers

Anand
**

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I wanted to get feedback from some of the readers here.
 
Suppose we were to plan on some transport solutions long term for Tier 2 cities
- such as Indore, or Hubli or Nagpur etc. We dont want them to see the
situations see in a Mumbai or a Bangalore 10 - 15 yrs from now. The METRO
solution is more  a reactive one, once the problem goes out of hand, you pump in
tens of thousands of crores. As I have mentioned previously, that is not
scalable to the country. We just dont have that kind of money - probably a Delhi
can afford it as in some sense it is cross-subsidised by the revenues from
across the country.  Even 100 km of METRO line costs upwards of Rs 20,000 crore
and that is the absolute minmum you need to make an impact on the city transport
infrastructure.
 
The suggestion here  is to probaly plan in mass transit corridors. That is have
a grid of corridors, reasonably spaced. The key is these are exclusively for
mass transport. ie private vehicles are not too be allowed on those. Now the
mode of transport is the one which is scalable. ie you start with say a simple
bus with signalling at intersections with cross roads, a la BRT, move on tograde
seperation at major intersections, then  local style trains or an LRT if the
loading starts becoming heavy  and with complete Right of Way for long streches
and eventually start replacing whole sections with METRO if the loading becomes
exceedingly heavy.
 
The corridors need not be wide, ie 10m wide say, so they dont take much land,
when land is not so expensive at an early stage. You dont spend too much money
upfront, you only put in money when neccessary. The advantage is your city can
plan around it, ie you can have high density complexes along these transit
corridors, so that it keeps the rest of the city pretty clean and traffic free.
You dont have to fight for alignment later. And these by law should always
exclude private vehicles and be exclusive (not part of a wider road) so the road
network develops exclusive of it. What I am trying to emphasize here, is because
these are allocated upfront, everybody from the commuters, house owners, real
estate developers, town planners, buisness folks etc know about it and this
alone will significantly ensure the city grows in the right way.Buisness folks
can plan their malls and office complexes along these stations. Since the land
is already there, it
  becomes much easier to lay the METRO etc if you want it, later on.
 
Any comments ?




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

http://www.livemint.com/2009/07/19131012/CAG-raps-Delhi-Metro-for-short.html


*CAG raps Delhi Metro for shortfall in ridership*
In its audit report on the Phase-I of the Delhi Metro, the CAG said
according to the projection of 1995, 31.85 lakh passenger trips per day were
expected on the completion of the project in 2005
  PTI
  New Delhi: The Comptroller and Auditor General of India has rapped the
Delhi Metro for shortfall in the ridership and cited higher fare structure
in comparison to other modes of public transport as the reason.
In its audit report on the Phase-I of the Delhi Metro, the CAG said
according to the projection of 1995, 31.85 lakh passenger trips per day were
expected on the completion of the project in 2005. The subsequent projection
of 2003 showed daily ridership of 22.60 lakh.
“With this extent of ridership projection, benefits of speedier and safer
travel for commuters, abatement in atmospheric pollution, reduction in fuel
consumption and accident rates and decongestion of roads were expected,” the
report said.
It said the highest daily average ridership attained was, however, only 6.62
lakh in November 2007, which was 21% of the original projections and 29% of
the revised figure.
The report said higher fare structure of Metro in comparison to other modes
of public transport, lack of proper connectivity and feeder bus system for
adjoining areas to the metro stations were the factors responsible for the
low ridership.
“For commuters the cost barrier went beyond the cost of Metro tickets. It
included cost of travel from the residence to the metro station and from the
station to the workplace,” it said.
But, sources in the DMRC said the Metro fares are one of the lowest in the
world. “The maximum fare is Rs22 while Delhi government has fixed a maximum
fare of Rs25 for AC buses introduced recently,” they pointed out.
The report also said despite low ridership, there was congestion on the
metro during peak hours. The congestion was attributed to “various factors
such as lower number of passenger cars, sub-optimal speed over the rail
network, lower frequency of trains and absence of differential fares during
peak hours”.
The DMRC said that efforts to boost ridership were a continuous process and
the company had already extended the operation hours.
The CAG said the DMRC should generate and sustain ridership by utilising the
surplus capacity available during off-peak hours and through measures that
provide and offer better facilities to commuters.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Yes, in smaller cities something less expensive than a heavy metro is
appropriate.  Bus rapid transit or on roads in the suburbs, reserved lanes,
would be an excellent way to start.  In various cities around the world a
start-up scheme involving buses initially but capable of being upgraded to light
rail/tram is the favoured way forward.   Closer to the centre of a city a
reserved right of way is necessary to avoid the buses/trams getting caught in a
log-jam of motor cars.    In England the Cambridge to St Ives corridor is being
converted to a busway just now and this involves an old railway right of way -
i.e. quite a narrow strip of land and therefore less costly to obtain.    A
Metro such as that in Mumbai can be justified only because of the gigantic
number of travellers that have to be moved.   Smaller cities cannot possible
afford something like that.
Iain Frew.




----Original Message----

From: srkulhalli@...

Date: 19/07/2009 14:22

To: <delhimetro@yahoogroups.com>

Subj: [delhimetro] Mass transit corridors






















I wanted to get feedback from some of the readers here.



Suppose we were to plan on some transport solutions long term for Tier 2 cities
- such as Indore, or Hubli or Nagpur etc. We dont want them to see the
situations see in a Mumbai or a Bangalore 10 - 15 yrs from now. The METRO
solution is more  a reactive one, once the problem goes out of hand, you pump in
tens of thousands of crores. As I have mentioned previously, that is not
scalable to the country. We just dont have that kind of money - probably a Delhi
can afford it as in some sense it is cross-subsidised by the revenues from
across the country.  Even 100 km of METRO line costs upwards of Rs 20,000 crore
and that is the absolute minmum you need to make an impact on the city transport
infrastructure.



The suggestion here  is to probaly plan in mass transit corridors. That is have
a grid of corridors, reasonably spaced. The key is these are exclusively for
mass transport. ie private vehicles are not too be allowed on those. Now the
mode of transport is the one which is scalable. ie you start with say a simple
bus with signalling at intersections with cross roads, a la BRT, move on tograde
seperation at major intersections, then  local style trains or an LRT if the
loading starts becoming heavy  and with complete Right of Way for long streches
and eventually start replacing whole sections with METRO if the loading becomes
exceedingly heavy.



The corridors need not be wide, ie 10m wide say, so they dont take much land,
when land is not so expensive at an early stage. You dont spend too much money
upfront, you only put in money when neccessary. The advantage is your city can
plan around it, ie you can have high density complexes along these transit
corridors, so that it keeps the rest of the city pretty clean and traffic free.
You dont have to fight for alignment later. And these by law should always
exclude private vehicles and be exclusive (not part of a wider road) so the road
network develops exclusive of it. What I am trying to emphasize here, is because
these are allocated upfront, everybody from the commuters, house owners, real
estate developers, town planners, buisness folks etc know about it and this
alone will significantly ensure the city grows in the right way.Buisness folks
can plan their malls and office complexes along these stations. Since the land
is already there, it

  becomes much easier to lay the METRO etc if you want it, later on.



Any comments ?



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]





































Fun games from Tiscali Play - http://www.tiscali.co.uk/play
_________________________________________________

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Dear Suhas,
What you have outlined is an utopian dream of every planner. Unfortunately when
you factor in organic nature of growth, political and socio-economic agenda,
local and regional competition for urban economic space, things seldom go
exactly as planned, Having said that, it is absolutely necessary to have a
planning intent. This is generally done through City wide Masterplans which tend
to work backwards from a 15-20 years' planning horizon and attempt to put
transport, land-use, socio-economic activities, and demographic dispositions in
place. As growth is a dynamic process such an exercise should be conducted every
5 years or so to calibrate the path ahead.
CheersAlok

--- On Sun, 7/19/09, Suhas Kulhalli <srkulhalli@...> wrote:

From: Suhas Kulhalli <srkulhalli@...>
Subject: [delhimetro] Mass transit corridors
To: delhimetro@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, July 19, 2009, 9:22 PM













 





                   I wanted to get feedback from some of the readers here.

 

Suppose we were to plan on some transport solutions long term for Tier 2 cities
- such as Indore, or Hubli or Nagpur etc. We dont want them to see the
situations see in a Mumbai or a Bangalore 10 - 15 yrs from now. The METRO
solution is more  a reactive one, once the problem goes out of hand, you pump in
tens of thousands of crores. As I have mentioned previously, that is not
scalable to the country. We just dont have that kind of money - probably a Delhi
can afford it as in some sense it is cross-subsidised by the revenues from
across the country.  Even 100 km of METRO line costs upwards of Rs 20,000 crore
and that is the absolute minmum you need to make an impact on the city transport
infrastructure.

 

The suggestion here  is to probaly plan in mass transit corridors. That is have
a grid of corridors, reasonably spaced. The key is these are exclusively for
mass transport. ie private vehicles are not too be allowed on those. Now the
mode of transport is the one which is scalable. ie you start with say a simple
bus with signalling at intersections with cross roads, a la BRT, move on tograde
seperation at major intersections, then  local style trains or an LRT if the
loading starts becoming heavy  and with complete Right of Way for long streches
and eventually start replacing whole sections with METRO if the loading becomes
exceedingly heavy.

 

The corridors need not be wide, ie 10m wide say, so they dont take much land,
when land is not so expensive at an early stage. You dont spend too much money
upfront, you only put in money when neccessary. The advantage is your city can
plan around it, ie you can have high density complexes along these transit
corridors, so that it keeps the rest of the city pretty clean and traffic free.
You dont have to fight for alignment later. And these by law should always
exclude private vehicles and be exclusive (not part of a wider road) so the road
network develops exclusive of it. What I am trying to emphasize here, is because
these are allocated upfront, everybody from the commuters, house owners, real
estate developers, town planners, buisness folks etc know about it and this
alone will significantly ensure the city grows in the right way.Buisness folks
can plan their malls and office complexes along these stations.  Since the land
is already there, it

  becomes much easier to lay the METRO etc if you want it, later on.

 

Any comments ?



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

































[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]