India’s first bullet train, connecting Mumbai and Ahmedabad, promises to revolutionize the nation’s transportation infrastructure and boost economic growth.
With a projected completion date in 2028, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail project is expected to significantly impact various sectors of the economy, from construction to tourism. Estimated to use 16 million tons of steel and 1.7 million cubic meters of cement, the project has already injected a significant boost into India’s construction industry, and officials hope the finished project will provide longer-term benefits as well.
The bullet train will cover a 508-kilometre route, drastically reducing travel time between the two western Indian cities to approximately two hours. The venture is part of India’s broader ambition to modernize its transportation network and stimulate economic activity along the corridor between the two major urban areas. The project is being manned by the National High-Speed Rail Corporation, which recently claimed that the project uses enough concrete to build eight ten-story buildings every day.
The bullet train project, estimated to cost $15 billion, is primarily financed through a loan of $12 billion from Japan, offered at a concessional interest rate of 0.1 percent over 50 years. So far, 780,000 cubic meters of concrete have been used in the construction process.
High-speed connectivity between Mumbai and Ahmedabad is expected to facilitate significantly faster travel for business and leisure, promoting regional economic integration. Key stops along the route include major cities such as Surat and Vadodara, which are significant industrial and commercial hubs.
Mumbai, India’s financial capital, remains a key player in the country’s economy and the Bollywood film industry. It houses the headquarters for the largest Indian and multinational corporations, as well as the Bombay Stock Exchange.
In contrast, Ahmedabad, a major city in the state of Gujarat further up the western coast, is emerging as an economic and industrial hub. In 2020, it was rated India’s third-best city to live in, according to the Ease of Living Index.
When asked in the Indian parliament five years ago about expanding the bullet train network to the rest of the country, the minister for railways said, “Bullet Train or High-Speed Rail Projects are highly capital and technology-intensive, and therefore, their proposals for other sections are subject to technical feasibility, financial and economic viability and availability of funding.”
Newsweek reached out to India’s National High-Speed Rail Corporation for comment on the project via email.
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