Work on Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train to start in September, complete by 2022

Work on the ambitious Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project is set to begin by September this year after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart lay the foundation of the project.

According to an India Today report, quoting Railway Board member Mohd Jamshed, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to visit India in September.

During his visit, Abe and Modi will jointly lay the project’s foundation. Incidentally, a major portion of the Rs 97,500 crore project cost is also expected to come in the form of a loan from Japan.

Jamshed, speaking at the 3rd Mail Today Tourism Summit in New Delhi, said that the government is committed to complete the project by 2022.

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train, a pet project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will be the first of its kind in India. Once completed, it will cut down travel time between the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route from the current seven hours to two hours.

The specially made rake will be able to hit speeds as high as 350 kmph, and operate at a speed of 320 kmph.

“It would prove to be a big leap for Indian Railways which is the backbone of the tourism sector in India with its vast network of over 66,000 km, catering to 24 million passengers everyday,” Jamshed said.

The Railways also catered to 9 million foreign tourists annually, he noted.

Since projects of this magnitude can easily run into legal or environmental issues due to land acquisition, Railways plans to keep the entire 508 km stretch of the project elevated.