Waiting for the cycle rickshaws at the end of a long queue outside of the Jhilmil metro station, Suresh Pal had no suggestion that the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has published an advisory asking passengers to try to escape it. Also, the rickshaw puller didn’t acknowledge the stringent measures Delhi Metro is planning to execute in the coming few days to decrease the already thinning footfall.

“The number of commuters has been going down with every passing day for about a fortnight presently. I only know about Sunday ‘Janata curfew’ ” Pal stated. “If people totally avoid the metro, I would lose my livelihood,” he said.

Who ferries passengers in Dilshad Garden Abdul Rehman is concerned now. “4 customers sit in my e-rickshaw and I take single person next to me. All of us do so while peak hours. However, for the past ten days, it has become tough to get 5 customers at a go and I’m running with 2-3 passengers at a time,” he replied. “We have decided not to ferry more than 4 customers even during peak hours so that everyone earns enough,” he further added.

DMRC has seen a dip of 18.5 per cent in the footfall in the first 15 days of March as compared to Feb. On Thursday, It viewed 37 lakh passenger journeys as compared to the usual 55-60 lakh on weekdays. To stop the transmission of Covid-19 the DMRC is planning to trim down the numbers also further posing a question of survival before somebody like Rehman and Pal.