Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Minister of Railways, told the Parliament on Wednesday that the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) Project (508 km) is well underway, with foundation work finished over 406 km and track laying beginning on 127 km of viaduct.
Piers spanning 395 km and girder casting and launching spanning over 300 km are the other significant project components that have been finished.
According to the minister in the Lok Sabha, work has already begun on erecting overhead equipment masts that will provide locomotives with electricity.
Eight of the twelve stations—Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Anand, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, and Sabarmati—have finished their foundation work.
In the Maharashtra segment, excavation work at the BKC station is almost finished, base slab casting has begun, and foundation work is underway at three stations (Thane, Virar, and Boisar).
Up to 16 river bridges have already been finished, and construction is underway on four river bridges in Maharashtra and in an advanced stage at five significant river crossings in Gujarat (Narmada, Vishwamitri, Mahi, Tapti, and Sabarmati).
Construction is underway on the depots at Thane, Surat, and Sabarmati. The only tunnel under construction in Gujarat is finished. While the 4 km tunnel between Ghansoli and Shilphata in Maharashtra is finished, work on the underwater tunnel, which is approximately 21 km long, has begun.
The minister added that up until June 30, 2025, a total of Rs 78,839 crore has been spent on the project. The project has directly and indirectly produced jobs for those involved in construction, the delivery of a variety of items, construction material, equipment and services.
Vaishnaw pointed out that a bullet train project is extremely complicated and technologically demanding, and that it is only after all related work on the track, electrical, signaling and telecommunication, civil structures, and trainset supply can the precise schedule and cost of the project be reasonably determined.
The minister added that all 1389.5 hectares of land needed for the MAHSR project had been purchased. All required forest, wildlife, and coastal regulation zone (CRZ) approvals have been acquired.
The project’s civil contracts have all been given out. Twenty-four of the twenty-eight tender packages have been awarded. Every one of the 1,651 utilities has been moved. To reduce noise during operations, noise barriers are being put in place.
The minister added that the Vande Bharat trains are not intended for the Bullet train project; rather, they are semi-high-speed trainsets for the current network. The Bullet train project is intended for Shinkansen trains in Japan.
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