Just a
few kilometres beyond the Badarpur border, it's a different world.
Roads are dug up and public transport gives way to shared autos, rickety
Haryana Roadways buses and an army of private vehicles. Welcome to
Faridabad, designed on the Nehruvian vision of a `City of Hope' but
seemingly stuck in a rut. All that is set to change by the end of this
month.
Metro's Violet line (ITO to Badarpur) is ready to connect a large part of Faridabad. A Metro spokesman said, "Trial runs have been successful and we hope to commission the line as soon as we get the safety clearance." Metro will soon place a request for the line's safety audit with the commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS).
For Faridabad, the Metro is more than a fast link to Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad. It's the first public transit system for a town dependent on shared autos, roadways buses and local trains.
Geeta Batheja, a resident of Sector 5 who works as mall manager at The Crown Plaza, said, "In Faridabad, people of a certain class either travel by private vehicle or stay at home. I've never used public transport." Kusum Joshi, a resident of Sector 49, said people use cars and bikes not because they are snobs but because shared autos don't ply on inner roads.
Ritika Bhonsle, a resident of Sector 37 and a school teacher, said her friends in Delhi go shopping by the Metro but "in Faridabad, you have to plan everything in advance". She said the Metro will bring Delhi closer to Faridabad and also make travelling within the town easy . "We don't have city buses like DTC, so private vehicles are necessary . With the Metro, we will be able to go out at will."
Kanchan Dass, a Pitampura resident, spends five hours commuting to and from her office in Faridabad. The Metro takes two hours till Badarpur and she spends another and she spends another half hour to reach her office in Sarai by rickshaw. "I pay Rs 80 for the rickshaw ride, more than I pay for the Metro," said Dass, an IT worker. Soon, she will be able to travel by Metro till Sarai and save half an hour both ways.
Dass's company is hiring, and she said they are getting better talent now. "Earlier, many candidates refused because of the long commute," she said.
Manoj Sharma, a Sector 14 resident, said Faridabad is finally getting its due with the Metro and other infrastructure projects like the FNG Expressway .
Batheja expects the Metro to transform people also. "Look at Delhi ... people have learnt to stand in queues." Bhonsle added, "Faridabad is not a happening city, but once people and businesses come because of the Metro, it will see development."
PRIMED FOR PROSPERITY
Founded in 1607 AD as a Mughal outpost on the road to Agra (now NH-2), Faridabad predates Ghaziabad by more than a century while Noida is relatively an infant town.Until Independence, it was a centre of milk and vegetable trade, but grew rapidly after it was used to settle refugees from Pakistan. Many polluting industries and central government offices were also located there to decongest and cleanup Delhi. The town had its golden phase in the 1950s and again witnessed a realty boom before the Meltdown in 2008.However, it couldn't ride the IT and ITES wave like Gurgaon and Noida The city is again primed to grow with large-scale investment in infrastructure.
Many flyovers and roads , are being built and the Metro line is ready for operations. The town's draft master plan for 2031 proposes many arterial roads and the development of Greater Faridabad or `Neharpar'
Metro's Violet line (ITO to Badarpur) is ready to connect a large part of Faridabad. A Metro spokesman said, "Trial runs have been successful and we hope to commission the line as soon as we get the safety clearance." Metro will soon place a request for the line's safety audit with the commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS).
For Faridabad, the Metro is more than a fast link to Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad. It's the first public transit system for a town dependent on shared autos, roadways buses and local trains.
Geeta Batheja, a resident of Sector 5 who works as mall manager at The Crown Plaza, said, "In Faridabad, people of a certain class either travel by private vehicle or stay at home. I've never used public transport." Kusum Joshi, a resident of Sector 49, said people use cars and bikes not because they are snobs but because shared autos don't ply on inner roads.
Ritika Bhonsle, a resident of Sector 37 and a school teacher, said her friends in Delhi go shopping by the Metro but "in Faridabad, you have to plan everything in advance". She said the Metro will bring Delhi closer to Faridabad and also make travelling within the town easy . "We don't have city buses like DTC, so private vehicles are necessary . With the Metro, we will be able to go out at will."
Kanchan Dass, a Pitampura resident, spends five hours commuting to and from her office in Faridabad. The Metro takes two hours till Badarpur and she spends another and she spends another half hour to reach her office in Sarai by rickshaw. "I pay Rs 80 for the rickshaw ride, more than I pay for the Metro," said Dass, an IT worker. Soon, she will be able to travel by Metro till Sarai and save half an hour both ways.
Dass's company is hiring, and she said they are getting better talent now. "Earlier, many candidates refused because of the long commute," she said.
Manoj Sharma, a Sector 14 resident, said Faridabad is finally getting its due with the Metro and other infrastructure projects like the FNG Expressway .
Batheja expects the Metro to transform people also. "Look at Delhi ... people have learnt to stand in queues." Bhonsle added, "Faridabad is not a happening city, but once people and businesses come because of the Metro, it will see development."
PRIMED FOR PROSPERITY
Founded in 1607 AD as a Mughal outpost on the road to Agra (now NH-2), Faridabad predates Ghaziabad by more than a century while Noida is relatively an infant town.Until Independence, it was a centre of milk and vegetable trade, but grew rapidly after it was used to settle refugees from Pakistan. Many polluting industries and central government offices were also located there to decongest and cleanup Delhi. The town had its golden phase in the 1950s and again witnessed a realty boom before the Meltdown in 2008.However, it couldn't ride the IT and ITES wave like Gurgaon and Noida The city is again primed to grow with large-scale investment in infrastructure.
Many flyovers and roads , are being built and the Metro line is ready for operations. The town's draft master plan for 2031 proposes many arterial roads and the development of Greater Faridabad or `Neharpar'
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