New Delhi, May 19: India’s first bullet train project is finally taking shape after nearly nine years of delays. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor (MAHSR) has faced numerous challenges, including land acquisition disputes and rising costs. However, the government now asserts that the project has crossed several significant construction milestones.
A striking image displayed at Gate Number 4 of the Ministry of Railways in New Delhi is capturing attention. It features a sleek, modern bullet train racing along elevated tracks amidst lush greenery. Although this is a digital rendering, it reflects the government’s growing confidence in realizing India’s bullet train dream.
The ambitious project was inaugurated in September 2017 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Now, almost nine years later, the project is gaining speed.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently provided updates on the project’s progress. According to him, 349 kilometers of the 508-kilometer corridor’s viaduct structure has been completed. This elevated structure is considered the most crucial and expensive part of the project, as approximately 90% of the track will be built above ground.
Additionally, pillars supporting the elevated track have been erected over 443 kilometers. The electrical work is also advancing rapidly, with over 7,700 overhead equipment masts installed across 179 kilometers.
The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), responsible for the project, has accelerated track and civil work. To minimize noise in populated areas, more than 570,000 noise barriers have been installed along 288 kilometers. Furthermore, track bed construction has been completed over 374 kilometers.
The Maharashtra segment of the project is deemed the most challenging due to land acquisition issues and political opposition, which slowed progress for several years. However, construction is now picking up pace. Officials report that five kilometers of the 21-kilometer underground tunnel from Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) to Shilphata has been excavated.
Recently, the project gained renewed attention when NHSRCL launched the country’s largest tunnel boring machine (TBM) in Vikroli, Mumbai. Weighing around 350 tons and measuring 13.6 meters in diameter, this machine will excavate the most difficult sections of the project.
This underground section will include India’s first undersea rail tunnel, approximately seven kilometers long, which will run beneath Thane Creek. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw described it as the largest cutter head ever used in any railway project in the country.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor will connect a total of 12 stations in Maharashtra and Gujarat. In Maharashtra, stations will be located in Mumbai, Thane, Virar, and Boisar, while Gujarat will have stations in Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand/Nadiad, Ahmedabad, and Sabarmati. A small section of the corridor will also pass through Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
According to NHSRCL officials, construction of the stations in Gujarat is progressing swiftly. Contracts for the construction of plazas at Surat, Bilimora, Vapi, Bharuch, Anand, and Vadodara have been awarded. In Maharashtra, work has begun on all three elevated stations, and the foundation work for the underground BKC terminal in Mumbai is ongoing.
The project will no longer rely solely on Japanese trains. While it is based on Japan’s Shinkansen technology, the trains will now be manufactured in India.
In late 2024, the Integral Coach Factory awarded a contract worth ₹867 crores to Bengaluru-based BEML to produce India’s first indigenous high-speed train. These trains will operate at a speed of approximately 250 kilometers per hour, with a maximum speed of 280 kilometers per hour. However, the entire infrastructure is being designed to accommodate speeds of up to 320 kilometers per hour.
Officials indicate that two types of services will operate on this route. The express service will stop only at Surat and Vadodara, covering the distance from Mumbai to Ahmedabad in just over two hours. Meanwhile, the all-station service will complete the journey in under three hours.
Currently, traditional trains take about seven hours to travel between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, while the Vande Bharat Express covers the distance in approximately five and a half hours. Therefore, the bullet train project is seen as a significant transformation for India’s railway system.
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