Mumbai-Ahmd bullet train likely to begin operations by 2027 end

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project, is expected to begin operations in Gujarat by 2027 end and will later be extended to Maharashtra, according to the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL).

The first phase of operations is likely to begin ahead of the Gujarat Assembly election, which is due in 2027 with the term of the House expiring on December 19, 2027.

Out of the 508-km-long rail corridor, 90% is elevated. Twelve stations will dot the corridor — eight in Gujarat (Sabarmati, Ahmedabad, Anand, Vadodara, Bharuch, Surat, Bilimora, and Vapi) and four in Maharashtra (Boisar, Virar, Thane, and Mumbai). Plans are afoot to begin operations between Vadodara and Vapi by 2027.

The NHSRCL aims to complete the project by the second half of 2028.

The service is expected to reduce travel time between the two cities to three hours.

Currently, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat is the fastest train on the route, with a travel time of five and a half hours. Travel by air takes about 95 minutes.

As of May 2024, overall progress of 44% has been made, with 53% of the work completed in Gujarat, and 25.6% in Maharashtra.

As of June, of the 508-km route, 183 km of viaduct and 313 km of pier work have been completed.

 Of the 1,390 hectares earmarked for the project, 960 are in Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and 430 in Maharashtra. Land acquisition has been completed for the rail corridor.

Laying of tracks has begun in Gujarat, with over 35,000 metric tonnes of rails and three sets of track construction machinery at Surat and Vadodara. The assembly, testing, and commissioning of the machinery is in progress.

In Maharashtra, construction of India’s first undersea rail tunnel, a 7-km stretch part of the project’s 21-km tunnel between Bandra Kurla Complex and Shilphata, is under way. The undersea tunnel is expected to be completed by mid-2028. Excavation to build five mountain tunnels in Palghar is on.

When the bullet train project was launched in 2017, the initial deadline was December 2023.

The timeline had to be revised owing to land acquisition challenges in Maharashtra and restrictions owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) through an Official Development Assistance (ODA), the project’s total cost is estimated at Rs. 1.08 lakh crore.

It is yet to be revised owing to delay in completion. The last tranche was signed between JICA and the Union government in December 2023, with an ODA of 400 billion Japanese yen or approximately Rs. 22,627 crore.