Delhi Metro services will begin at 4:30 am on 16 November to help devotees travelling for the morning ‘Usha Arghya’ during Chhath Puja, with trains initially running every 15 minutes across the network.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation said in a post on X that services would start early from all terminal stations on Monday to facilitate the movement of passengers heading to Chhath ghats before sunrise. The special arrangement will remain in place until regular passenger services begin, after which trains will operate according to the scheduled timetable for the rest of the day.
Starting trains simultaneously from all terminal stations is intended to provide early connectivity across Delhi and the National Capital Region. The source report did not provide a separate station-wise timetable or details of any additional crowd-control arrangements at individual stations.
The early service decision comes as Delhi prepares for large gatherings at riverfront and canal-side locations. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta visited the Yamuna bank at Sonia Vihar on Sunday, offered prayers to the setting sun and inspected Chhath ghats from a boat. She also spoke with devotees and conveyed festival greetings.
According to the report, the Delhi government said it had made arrangements at Yamuna-side locations for Chhath celebrations and was developing an additional ghat along the Munak canal in north Delhi. The chief minister said the government was committed to providing better facilities to the Purvanchali community during festivals and acknowledged the contribution of people from different parts of the country to the capital’s development.
The arrangements place public transport alongside temporary festival infrastructure in supporting access to major gathering points. For devotees travelling before dawn, the 4:30 am start gives the Metro a formal role in the city’s early-morning movement, although the source does not specify which stations are closest to the designated ghats or whether last-mile services will be modified.
The report also said that special buses had been arranged between Delhi and Bihar for people travelling home for the festival. Public Works Department Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh performed Chhath Puja at his residence, where his wife Swati Verma welcomed devotees and their families.
The DMRC’s early-start schedule is the clearest operational change announced for the morning observance. Trains will run at 15-minute intervals until normal services commence, with the regular timetable applying thereafter.
