India’s First Bullet Train To Cut Short Travel Time Between Ahmedabad And Mumbai By Half From 2022

Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe laid foundation stone for the ambitious Ahmedabad-Mumbai Bullet Train project here on Thursday. The ground-breaking ceremony of India's first bullet train project was performed at the Athletic Stadium near the Sabarmati railway station. Modi and Abe pressed buttons to unveil plaques announcing the launch of India's revolutionary rail project.

The cost incurred for the project is estimated at Rs1.1 lakh crore and the Japanese team plans to roll out by 2023. However, Modi wants it to start function on August 15, 2022 - when India completes 75 years of Independence.

The project is a joint venture between the Indian Railways and Japanese firm Shinkansen Technology. Japan will fund 81 percent of the project, nearly Rs. 88,000 crores, in soft loans at an interest rate of 0.1 percent and the loan will have to be repaid over 50 years.

Accommodating 750 people, the bullet train is expected to reduce the travel time between the two cities from seven to roughly three hours starting. Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Union Railway Ministry have inked a memorandum of understanding for the 508-km corridor. A 21-km-long tunnel will be dug between Boisar and BKC in Mumbai, seven km of which will be under the sea.