Vaishnaw reviews Bullet train project work at BKC station: ‘Moving very fast’

Beyond Shilphata, the location where the tunnel will close, construction across the section in Maharashtra is now in full swing following land acquisition.

Vaishnaw took a tour of the underconstruction station site with National High-Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL), Central Railway and Western Railway officials to review on groundwork.

The BKC station, which will be the nation’s first underground Bullet train station, will be a multi-level complex. “It will consist of three basement levels: B3 for parking of trains, B2 for functioning, and B1, in addition to the ground floor, for passenger access. We are trying to develop a world-class station here,” Vaishnaw said.

As per NHSRCL officials, nearly 76 per cent of the excavation for the BKC station has already been done.

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor is India’s first Bullet train corridor. Stretching over 500 km, the corridor is being constructed by NHSRCL with technical and financial support of Japan. The high-speed rail corridor is likely to reduce travel time between the two cities to about two hours from the current six to seven hours.

The project will cost an estimated Rs 1.08 lakh crore. The Centre will contribute Rs 10,000 crore while Maharashtra and Gujarat will contribute Rs 5,000 crore each. Most of the funds will be through a soft loan from Japan at a nominal rate of interest of 0.1%.

On April 28, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that the Bullet train is set to begin operations in 2028.

Work on the Gujarat side of the corridor is well ahead, but progress in the Maharashtra section has gained pace after major hurdles such as land acquisition were addressed. The train, once operational, will travel at speeds of up to 320 kmph and will revolutionise regional connectivity between Ahmedabad and Mumbai.