Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited, a state-owned company with equal equity participation from Government of India and Government of Delhi, built and operates the Delhi Metro. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has been certified by the United Nations as the first metro rail and rail-based system in the world to get "carbon credits for reducing greenhouse gas emissions" and helping in reducing pollution levels in the city by 630,000 tonnes every year.

DMRC operates around 2000 trips daily between 05:30 till 00:00 running with a headway varying between 1–2 minutes and 4–10 minutes. The trains are usually of four, six and eight-coach. The power output is supplied by 25-kilovolt, 50-hertz alternating current through overhead catenary.
Planning for the metro started in 1984, when the Delhi Development Authority and the Urban Arts Commission came up with a proposal for developing a multi-modal transport system for the city.