Bullet train work gathering pace; over 98% land acquired

21 Dec 2022 CW Team

Work on the railways' bullet train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad has gained momentum, with the ministry saying that more than 98% of the land has been acquired for the project in Maharashtra.

Piers have been erected for a distance of more than 118 kilometres, girders are being launched and the work on the construction of bullet train stations has also started, the ministry said.

With a change of government in Maharashtra, the sticking points in the project like forest clearances and land acquisition seem to have been overcome.

In a series of tweets, the ministry claimed that while 98.22% of the required land has been acquired in Maharashtra, in Gujarat, 98.87% has been acquired and in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, 100% of the land has been acquired for the project.

The physical progress till November 23 was 24.1%, the ministry said, adding that while almost 30% of the work has been completed in Gujarat, in Maharashtra, around 13% has so far been achieved.

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project is of 508 km length and most of it is in Gujarat. In Maharashtra, the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), the implementing agency of the project, has to develop the Bandra-Kurla Complex and the network in Thane, Virar and Boisar.

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