Lucknow, Sep 7 : The Metro train services in Uttar Pradesh's capital Lucknow resumed on Monday with COVID-19 guidelines and protocols in place, after a gap of over five months. The Metro services were halted across the country in view of the coronavirus pandemic in March. The Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC) had already made necessary preparations for the service resumption. The responsibility of monitoring the Metro services has been entrusted to all officials to ensure that passengers do not face any problem as well as follow the health guidelines strictly. Lucknow Metro has also launched a scheme to encourage use of 'Go Smart Card', wherein a mask costing Rs 20 is given free of cost to the buyers. Kumar Keshav, Managing Director, UPMRC, said: "The Lucknow Metro is the best option for urban transportation. The Metro stations will be sanitised every four to five hours. There are guidelines to sanitise the lifts, escalators, counters, automated fare gates and ticket-vending machines every three to four hours. The officials deployed at the stations have been given strict instructions." Keshav said that paper napkins have also been arranged at all metro stations. Handwash and sanitiser facilities have been put at the entry points and passengers requested to use them. The Metro has also removed activation charges to encourage the use of 'Go Smart Cards'. The Lucknow Metro has started operations of 16 trains from Monday. Passengers will not have to wait longer as the trains will be available after a gap of 5.30 minutes. At the same time, passengers will sit on alternate seats. The Metro trains will operate with 40 per cent of the total passenger capacity. Masks will be mandatory and any passenger who forgets to bring a mask along will be provided one. There are no separate gates for entry and exit points. The social distance norm will be strictly followed at all stations, ticket counters, ticket-vending machines, and security checkups. Also, the tokens would only be given to the passengers after passing them through UV rays. /IANS