Bullet Train Project May Get Commissioned At Once, Maharashtra To Provide Land Soon

The country’s first high-speed bullet train project may get entirely commissioned for operations at once. Recently, Vinod Kumar Yadav, Chairman of Railway Board, while addressing media via video-conferencing said that Indian Railways is making efforts that the entire bullet train project is commissioned end-to-end, at once. He added that railway authorities want to commission the bullet train project together in both Gujarat and Maharashtra and have planned accordingly. Additionally, the Maharashtra government has assured to make more than 80 per cent of land available for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project in the next four months.

The Railway Board Chairman stated that the authorities are also preparing if they can run the bullet train till Vapi (Gujarat) in the first phase if there is a delay in land acquisition in Maharashtra. Once operational, the 508-km long Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed bullet train will operate at speed of 320 km per hour, passing through Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The entire distance between the two states is expected to be covered in two-three hours and will have 12 stations en route.

The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), mandated for implementing the bullet train project, signed two contract agreements with infrastructure conglomerate Larsen and Toubro (L&T). The contracts include the design and construction of the 88 km long (approximately) viaducts between Vadodara and Ahmedabad in Gujarat, including the construction of an elevated station at Anand/Nadiad, maintenance depot, and bridges. With the contracts, NHSRCL has awarded civil contracts for the construction of almost 92 per cent of high-speed rail corridor alignment in Gujarat, which is 325 km out of 352 km in the state. It also involves the country’s biggest infrastructure contract for design and construction.