A technical glitch disrupted services on Delhi Metro's Yellow Line for at least four hours on Tuesday, leaving thousands of passengers stranded on the road and traffic snarls all the way from Gurgaon to New Delhi.
Trains on the line that connects Huda City Centre in Gurgaon to Samaypur Badli in the city, running a distance of 49 km, stalled at 9.32 am and normal services were not resumed till after 1.30 pm.
Services were hit due to a breakdown of the overhead wire (OHE) at Sultanpur station, midway between Gurgaon and Delhi, leading to power supply tripping in the section, DMRC officials said.
"Due to a technical snag at a station, train services were affected on the Yellow Line," a senior DMRC official said.
Trains were initially run between Huda City Centre and Sultanpur and between Samaypur Badli and Qutub Minar temporarily, he said.
There was no train movement between Sultanpur and Qutub Minar in the morning rush hours.
Passengers of the two trains which were passing through the section at the time were asked to deboard and services were resumed by running trains in short loops, officials said.
With the lifeline that connects the national capital to the satellite town of Gurgaon severed, there was mayhem on the roads -- and on the tracks.
Some people got off the train and had to walk on the track at Qutub Minar station and others were stuck inside coaches, sending out tweets asking for the air-conditioning to be put on.
And then there were those who had no option but to simply walk the distance. There were the old and young, men and women, some with children and others with bags, knocking at car windows and searching for cabs, auto-rickshaws or any vehicle that could give them a lift.
When that did not work, several hundreds just squared their shoulders and walked in the scorching sun on the Mehrauli-Gurgaon highway.
Many did not reach their offices and those that did reported for work late. One woman, who took a lift from a passing car, said she was desperate to get to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences for an MRI, an appointment she got after many months of waiting.
With the metro out of service, there was surge pricing on radio cabs and autos.
Those fortunate enough to be in their cars also suffered with huge traffic jams that lasted for more than two hours.
Crowds swarmed the stations with people spilling on to the stairs and the road.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal sought a report from Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot.
"I have asked transport minister to seek a detailed report and direct Delhi Metro to fix responsibility," he said on Twitter.
Many commuters took to social media to express their anger.
"My wife is stuck since 9 am No feeder bus No Cabs No Auto Crazy scene," a commuter tweeted.
Another commuter complained that many were stuck in trains with no AC. The commuter also claimed that some passengers also fainted.
The DMRC ran feeder buses in the affected section to provide relief to the commuters, they added.
An estimated seven to eight lakh commuters use the Yellow Line each day. Delhi Metro's ridership is more than 30 lakh a day.
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