The much anticipated and controversial Bullet train project between India's commercial capital Mumbai and the biggest city in Gujarat, Ahmedabad is under construction. A new development has come to pass in the matter.
New Undersea Tunnel Competed in 6 Months
According to the Union Minister for Railways, Ashwini Vaishnav the project that has been under construction since 2020 (during the beginning of the Covid pandemic) has attained a crucial milestone of constructing an undersea tunnel.
The additionally driven intermediary tunnel or ADIT which is 394 metres long was completed in the span of 6 months.
This tunnel will aid in the construction of the main tunnel, which is 21 km long. In this the undersea tunnel is supposed to be 7 km long.
The Japanese E5 Series Shinkansen rakes are supposed to run on these lines. | CHENG CHENG-EN
The total length of the project is 508.18 km long. It is said to have 12 stations in the journey between Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
The network is expected to start in Mumbai's commercial district of Bandra -Kurla Complex or BKC, where it is expected to be further connected to the metro systems, that are also under construction.
The Project Cost: Rs 1,08,000 Crore
This project is scheduled to open in 2026 and is promised to reduce the travel time between two cities.
The Japanese E5 Series Shinkansen rakes are supposed to run on these lines.
The project which is being constructed at the cost of Rs 1,08,000 crore has been under immense scrutiny, right from the time of its inception. The astronomic cost of the project, along with its construction at the time of the pandemic, when economic activities came to a standstill were the points that were raised by entities who raised questions on the viability of the project.
In addition, detractors of the project have also claimed that this project is essential, given how well connected these two cities are, through other means, including road and air transport.
