The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation announced on Saturday that it would run staggered services on Monday in view of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic has infected 26 people in Delhi so far, 283 nationwide, and nearly 3 lakh globally.

The metro authority said that services on Monday will run only from 6 am to 10 am and 4 pm to 8 pm. Between 6 am and 8 am, only “people involved in essential services like hospital, electricity, fire, police, etc” will be allowed to enter metro stations. The said persons will have to carry their identification cards. Trains will operate at a frequency of 20 minutes.

Between 8 am and 10 am, the metro services will be opened to the general public, and will run at normal frequency. Between 10 am and 4 pm, there will be no metro services except carriages yet to reach their destinations.

The DMRC said that the public will be allowed to board metro trains between 4 pm and 8 pm. After 8 pm, there will be no metro services except those trains which are yet to reach their destinations. Parking facilities at the metro stations will remain closed on Monday.

No metro trains will operate in the national Capital on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in a speech this week asked people to observe a “janata Curfew” from 7 am to 9 pm on Sunday, and isolate themselves in their houses. Subsequently, the DMRC cancelled all Delhi metro services on that day.