Next-gen Lifts & Escalators to be installed at Delhi Metro’s Phase-IV corridors

New Delhi: In a major historic step involving the Public Private Partnership (PPP) and enhanced indigenization for the metro rail systems in India, the Delhi Metro has awarded the first contract for the lease and maintenance of Lifts and Escalators for the three priority corridors under its ongoing Phase-IV expansion.

This is a first of its kind historic financial model in this sector adopted in India for funding of public infrastructure projects based on the PPP model wherein Johnson Lifts, Chennai (i.e. vendor) will initially bear the entire cost for design, manufacturing, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the lifts and escalators, and will maintain them for a period of 15 years. In addition, these lifts are fully indigenized and for the first time escalators will be indigenized up to a level of 65 percent. Till now, the escalators for heavy-duty applications were being fully imported, this will give a further boost to the 'Make in India' initiative.

Under this model, DMRC will release monthly payments of lease and maintenance charges once these lifts and escalators become operational and the release of maintenance payments will be linked to the key performance parameters defined in the contracts. The entire upkeep and maintenance will be handled by the Contractor during these 15 years. The systems will be installed with the provision of their 24X7 online monitoring.

This leasing model will also enhance the quality, efficiency and capacity of lifts and escalators to be commissioned under Phase-IV. For the first time in India, the Metro systems will have lifts with a huge carrying capacity of around 20 commuters at a time. In earlier phases, DMRC had lifted with a carrying capacity of only 8 to 13 passengers. CCTV cameras will also be installed inside the lifts for the first time under Phase-IV for enhanced safety.

The contract agreements for the procurement of state-of-the-art, heavy-duty, indigenized lifts and escalators for the three priority corridors under Phase-IV were exchanged between DMRC's Director (Electrical) Om Hari Pande and Johnson Lifts' Chairman cum Managing Director John K John in the presence of DMRC's Managing Director Dr Mangu Singh and other senior officials.

The Phase-IV priority corridors are – Janakpuri West – RK Ashram Marg, Majlis Park – Maujpur and Tughalakabad – Aerocity for which DMRC has awarded these contracts to procure around 179 lifts and 323 escalators to be commissioned across these corridors comprising a total length of 65 KM and 45 stations.

Presently, DMRC is operating a network of approximately 390 KM with 286 stations, wherein around 1000 Lifts and more than 1100 escalators have been installed at different premises across its network for passenger convenience.

(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Google News. Click here to follow. Also, join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram. You may also follow us on Twitter here and stay updated.)