Pink line’s Nizamuddin to become big transport hub

 New Delhi: After Anand Vihar, Hazrat Nizamuddin is all set to become the next big transport hub of the city to be connected with the Metro, after the newly built stretch between Mayur Vihar Pocket 1 and Lajpat Nagar opens on Monday.

The station will have entry and exit gates opening to both -- the Inter-State Bus Terminus at Sarai Kale Khan and the Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station, which caters mostly to the south-bound long-distance trains. 

"One of the entry/exit points will be within a vicinity of 50 metres from the Sarai Kale Khan ISBT. 

Another entry/exit will be near the Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway station, approximately at a distance of 150 metres," an official from the Delhi Metro said. 

The stretch is part of the 59-km-long Pink Line, which will be connecting Shiv Vihar to Majlis Park and is the third and the last one of the entire line to open. The rest of the line was opened for commuters in two phases earlier, in 2018.
 
On the aesthetic front, the Metro has beautified the station with 30 artworks along with "jharokhas", portraying the "historical heritage" of the area. 

The stretch will also have the "world's smallest station" on it in Ashram Metro Station, which has been built in an area of 152 metres instead of 265 metres average for the Delhi Metro stations.

"The station had to be built on less than average stretch of surface area because of difficulty in procuring a piece of land - a private property which went into litigation. 

Another reason, which contributed to the space crunch, was a proposed underpass on the Ring Road to be built by the PWD," the official said.
 
To manage all amenities and accommodate the paraphernalia it houses, the corporation had to, the official said, build a mezzanine floor (an intermediate floor) on the station to store the equipment and use the space under a flyover outside for the chiller plant. 

The stretch will be inaugurated by Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday at 11 am and will be opened for public the same day at 4 pm.