Taking a cue from London’s transport museum, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has presented a unique gift to Delhiites in the form of the Delhi Metro museum which traces the origin and historic moments in the construction of the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS). The Metro Museum in Delhi is South Asia’s first modern Metro Museum, showcasing the Delhi Metro, and it also is the only such installation worldwide in an operational Metro station.
The museum is similar to the London’s museum and it houses photographs, newspaper archives, models of the trains, curios, books and audio visual films made tracing the history of Delhi Metro. The Metro Museum is the pride and joy of the DMRC. This museum is housed at the Patel Chowk metro station and is small however it carries a huge significance for not only the commuters which are primarily the people of Delhi, but also for the thousands of people coming from different states and who were or are involved in the construction of the Delhi Metro. The museum is a tribute to the work done by a huge number of people.
The actual construction of the Metro might have only started in the last decade, but the origins of the plan date as far back as the eighties. The museum is filled with miniature models of trains, tunnels and other Metro related machines. Hand-made miniature coach models are for sale as well at a whopping INR 10k a piece. The museum also displays the most important dates and events from the decade long construction process. There is a detailed explanation to the construction bazaar metro station which is the second deepest Metro station in the world. The Metro museum also showcases soil samples from different parts of Saddi Dilli.
The Museum has two touch screen computers that play the DMRC corporate movie and animations describing the way Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM) and launching girders used in elevated construction work. Mannequins wearing the different uniforms worn by operations and construction staff, along with brief descriptions of these, a model of the Metro train, models of stations, share certificates and close-circuit television camera which visitors can use are included.
The souvenir store at the museum is another major attraction. There are cuff links, ties, pens, key-chains and various other knick-knacks on sale, which are becoming extremely popular throughout the city.
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