Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train: Ashwini Vaishnaw reviews status of India’s 1st high-speed railway project

Ashwini Vaishnaw reviewed the country's first bullet train project.

On Sunday, newly appointed Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reviewed the country’s first bullet train project between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. During a review meeting, Vaishnaw was apprised on the status of the high-speed rail project by the MD of the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), its implementing agency. According to officials quoted in a PTI report, so far, 1,035 hectare has been acquired out of the total of 1,396 hectare of land required for the bullet train project. Out of the 74% land acquisition till now, the majority of 96% falls in Gujarat, while only 25% falls in the state of Maharashtra. Besides, 96% of the land needed for the project in Dadra Nagar Haveli has been already been acquired, they said.

According to them, the contracts of civil work for the construction of 92% of the high-speed rail corridor alignment- 325 kilometres out of 351 kilometres as well as five stations- have been awarded in Gujarat and the Union Territory of Dadra Nagar Haveli, and in the region, construction work has already started, employing nearly 2,200 people and 300 major machineries. Around 90% of land has already been handed over to contractors for construction work. Also, over 5,300 drawings related to various structures have been submitted to the NHSRCL by contractors. Moreover, geo-technical investigation has been completed at as many as 785 locations as well as test pile casting has been completed at six locations, the officials said. Currently, work of construction is ongoing at 10 sites.

The officials said the contract for the remaining 8% of the alignment as well as three remaining stations in Gujarat is expected to be awarded by this year-end and for the rolling stock depot in Sabarmati, it will be awarded early next year. By the last quarter of this year, track construction work for 237 kilometres is also expected to be awarded and the rest of the track works in Gujarat by early next year. Work in the state of Maharashtra is limited to land acquisition and utility shifting, the officials said. According to them, the major hindrance for contract award in the Maharashtra part of the bullet train alignment is the availability of land as at least 80% of the land has to be made available before any of the work can be awarded.