India's first bullet train project, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR), has achieved a major milestone with 300km of viaduct construction completed.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) project—India's first bullet train initiative—has reached a significant construction milestone with 300 kilometres of viaduct work now completed. On Tuesday, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the update through a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), offering a glimpse into the progress of this transformative infrastructure project.
Being executed by the National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), the bullet train corridor continues to make steady headway. Back in November 2023, the NHSRCL had reported 100 km of viaduct and over 250 km of pier work completed. The latest update shows a remarkable acceleration in construction activity in recent months.
According to NHSRCL, the completed viaduct spans include structures built over six major rivers in Gujarat—Par, Purna, Mindhola, Ambika, Auranga, and Venganiya—mostly located in the Valsad and Navsari districts. These viaducts utilize 40-metre-long full span box girders and segmental girders. In a further nod to international standards, noise barriers are already being installed along stretches of the elevated corridor.
Apart from viaducts, other components of the bullet train project are progressing in parallel. In Surat, engineers have laid the first reinforced concrete track bed using Japan's Shinkansen "J-slab ballastless" technology, a first for India. The project has also achieved a breakthrough on a 350-metre-long mountain tunnel in Valsad and erected its first steel bridge—a 70-metre structure—in Surat. This is the first of 28 planned steel bridges along the route.
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The foundation stone for the high-speed corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on September 14, 2017. NHSRCL, which was incorporated in February 2016, operates as a Special Purpose Vehicle under the Ministry of Railways with equity participation from the central government and the state governments of Gujarat and Maharashtra.
