Delhi Metro: Lifeline of Delhi-NCR completes 23 years of illustrious operational journey

Delhi Metro, the lifeline of the national capital, celebrated a landmark moment on the completion of 23 years of successful metro operations in the National Capital Region (NCR) on Wednesday.

Currently, the Delhi Metro caters to an average of 65 lakh passenger journeys per day.

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On this very day in 2002, the then Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, had inaugurated the first stretch of the Delhi Metro from Shahdara to Tis Hazari on the Red Line. Since then, the Delhi Metro has emerged as the lifeline of the city of Delhi and the entire National Capital Region.

“On a cold December morning back in 2002, the journey of the Delhi Metro started, and with it, commenced the story of India’s most successful mass transport system. Today, the 24th of December 2025, marks the completion of 23 years of the Delhi Metro’s illustrious operational journey,” a DMRC spokesperson said.

TS#01, the first-ever train to operate on the Delhi Metro network, continues to be a proud member of the large fleet that transports lakhs of people to their destinations every day. The train has undergone multiple upgrades in keeping with the standards followed worldwide.

Initially, TS#01 was of four cars, but to cater to the requirement of increased passenger demand, the number of coaches was increased to six in 2014 and then to eight in 2023.

Delhi Metro’s first-ever train has been in revenue service since 2002, covering approximately 2.9 million kilometres and safely carrying over 60 million passengers, with a mammoth 2.4 million door operations.

TS#01 was manufactured by MRM Consortium, South Korea, and was then transferred to Kolkata, India, by ship. From Kolkata, it was transferred to Delhi using the Indian railway network. The initial cost of the four-coach train was approximately Rs 24 crore.

The advanced design of the propulsion system of the train has helped in reducing the carbon footprint by regenerating as much as 40 percent (approx) of the total power consumed through regenerative braking.

So far, TS#01 has undergone two major overhauls by DMRC’s maintenance team. Because of timely interventions and maintenance overhauls, TS#01 has been able to maintain MDBF (Train kms per reliability failure) of 85,000 kilometres over the minimum contractual requirement of 40,000 kilometres.

“Today, when the Delhi Metro is proudly completing 23 years of operations, TS#01 continues its glorious journey of providing safe, reliable, and comfortable travel to the commuters,” the spokesperson said.

TS#01 went through mid-life rehabilitation in 2024 with upgrades, which included the latest IP-based PAPIS (Passenger announcement and passenger information system).

The latest IP-based PAPIS features includes CCTV to increase the safety and security of the passengers; Integrated Passenger Emergency Alarms is to increase passenger convenience and safety; LCD Based Dynamic Route Map & Public information boards is to provide real time information of stations and door opening directions as well as safety videos to the passengers; Door Refurbishment is to improve the reliability of the door system; Fire Detection system is to increase the passenger safety; Relay Panel Refurbishment is to improve the reliability and punctuality of the train; Mobile/Laptop Socket outlet is for convenience of commuters and Interior and Cab Exterior Repainting is to improve the aesthetics of train.