Railway Minister visits Japan to resolve bullet train issues ahead of Modi visit this year

Railway Minister visits Japan to resolve bullet train issues ahead of Modi visit this year

Updated - September 30, 2024 10:37 pm IST - NEW DELHI

Officials say that while the entire land acquisition in Gujarat and Maharashtra had been completed, the deadlock over costs for supplying rolling stock or train sets and signalling systems still persists Maitri Porecha, Suhasini Haidar

File photo of a Shinkansen high-speed train in Tokyo, Japan. | Photo Credit: AP

Senior officials led by Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw undertook a three-day trip to Japan in September to resolve a number of problems that have resulted in a deadlock between India and Japan over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project — the bullet train. Sources said, among the problems they discussed were Japan’s insistence on Japanese vendors for the trains and signalling systems, as well as costing and timing estimates for the completion of the project. Member (Infrastructure) Railway Board, Anil Kumar Khandelwal, and Vivek Kumar Gupta, Managing Director of the National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL), also accompanied Mr. Vaishnaw, sources said, as pressure to complete construction milestones in the project grows ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Tokyo for the annual summit later this year.

Officials said that while the entire land acquisition in Gujarat and Maharashtra had been completed, and 215 km of viaduct of the total 508 km distance was completed, the deadlock over costs for supplying rolling stock or train sets and signalling systems still persists. 

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“Japan which is providing all the technical support and technology for running the bullet trains is keen that the train sets and the signalling system be purchased from Japanese suppliers only,” sources in the know told The Hindu. 

According to Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) loan conditions, only Japanese manufacturers such as Kawasaki and Hitachi can participate in the bid. 

The increase in the project’s costing is also becoming another issue. According to NHSRCL figures, an expenditure of up to ₹60,372 crore (unaudited) has already occurred between FY 2020-21 to FY 2023-24, against a total outlooked budget of ₹1.08 lakh crore. 

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“A majority of this cost has been spent in creating infrastructure for the bullet train like constructing the viaduct, girder casting and launching, laying rail level slabs and so on. This leaves increasingly small margin for spending on buying the train sets and setting up the signalling systems,” officials said indicating the project costs will further escalate. 

The train, built with Japan’s Shinkansen technology, that was first launched exactly 60 years ago in Japan (on October 1, 1964), will run at lightning speed, about 320 km/hour between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, covering the total distance in about 3 hours, and was due to begin operations in 2023. 

Earlier this year, Mr. Vaishnaw said a 50-km section between Surat and Bilimora was likely to begin operations in 2026, but officials say the latest issues could push the launch further. In addition, construction of a 21 km-long tunnel between Mumbai BKC and Shilphata, including 7 km undersea tunnel at Thane creek, which was awarded in May 2023, will take at least five years to complete.

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Shinkansen vs indigenous tech

Top sources in the Ministry of Railways told The Hindu that while the deadlock over costing persists, discussions are still on for the Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) Corridor to receive Japanese Shinkansen trains as per the agreement between governments of India and Japan. 

In the meanwhile, sources said that decision for indigenous development of train sets running between 249 kmph to 280 kmph for standard gauge has been taken by the Ministry. “Since there is no standard gauge track available on Indian Railway presently (India uses broad gauge tracks), trials of standard gauge train set are planned to be undertaken in the Surat-Bilimora section of MAHSR,” officials said. 

“The bullet train project is very complex and technology intensive. Timelines for the completion of the project can be reasonably ascertained only after completion of all associated works of civil structures, track, electrical, signalling and telecommunication and supply of train sets,” an official said.

Land transfer issue

The project was also significantly delayed when Shiv Sena (UBT) was at the helm in Maharashtra, and was brought back on track in 2023, when governments in the State and Centre aligned with the BJP, sources said. However, several details of the transfer of land from State to NSHRCL are yet to be ironed out, given that the commercial rate at which the land in Bandra Kurla Complex needs to be acquired currently stands at a whopping ₹3,500 crore. 

 “Discussions between the State government and NHSRCL are still on, and no final number has been decided for the same. Equity adjustment or payment to the Maharashtra government will happen in due course of time,” the sources said.