3 to tango! After Yellow & Violet, Central Secretariat to link up with Magenta Line in Delhi Metro's Phase V(A)

NEW DELHI: The Central Secretariat metro station is set to become a triple interchange facility following the recent approval of Delhi Metro's Phase V(A) corridors. Currently, the station is connected to the Yellow and Violet Lines, but it will be linked to the Magenta Line (Central Vista corridor from RK Ashram Marg to Indraprastha).With this connectivity, about 60,000 office-goers and two lakh visitors will benefit daily, said Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC). "At present, the Central Secretariat station serves as an important interchange hub of central Delhi, serving as a junction between the Yellow and Violet Lines. Thousands of office-going persons who commute to central Delhi office areas use this vital metro station. Now, with the approval of Phase V(A), the Central Secretariat station will provide connectivity to the Yellow Line, Violet Line and the Magenta Line extension," said Anuj Dayal, principal executive director, corporate communications, DMRC.Dayal added that this will provide connectivity to all the Kartavya Bhawans, thereby providing doorstep connectivity to the office-goers and visitors in this area. Kashmere Gate is currently the lone station on the Delhi Metro network which connects three corridors: Rithala to Shaheed Sthal (New Bus Adda) on the Red Line, Millennium City Centre to Samaypur Badli on the Yellow Line, and Kashmere Gate to Raja Nahar Singh (Ballabhgarh) on the Violet Line.However, the city will get four additional triple interchange stations — Azadpur, Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi and Inderlok — as part of the ongoing DMRC Phase IV expansion.Azadpur will become a triple interchange station after the RK Ashram–Janakpuri West corridor (an extension of the Magenta Line), which is under construction, becomes operational. Azadpur metro station currently is an interchange facility where the Yellow and Pink Lines criss-cross each other.Lajpat Nagar is currently connected to the Violet and Pink Lines and will be linked to the Golden Line when the Lajpat Nagar to Saket G Block corridor becomes functional. New Delhi is currently connected to the Yellow and Airport Express Lines and will also be linked to the Green Line in the Inderlok–Indraprastha corridor.Inderlok, which is an interchange station between the Red and Green Lines, will also meet the Magenta Line after the Phase IV expansion."Triple interchange stations enable seamless transfers between three metro corridors at a single location, substantially reducing travel time and making cross-city journeys faster, smoother and more convenient for commuters," said Dayal.At present, there are 29 interchange metro stations in the DMRC network. After completion of Phase IV, the total number of interchange stations will rise to 43, and with Phase V(A), the number of interchanges will increase to 46.