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Why did Karnataka lose on the bullet train?

  • Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe launched the work on bullet train line at Ahmedabad in India
  • The train is set to be ready for public use in 2022 and will reduce the journey hours from Gujarat to Mumbai
  • In the southern India, only Chennai has got the bullet train, and Bengaluru has missed out despite being the IT and BT hub
Why did Karnataka lose on the bullet train

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe launched the work on bullet train line with a £12bn loan from Japan. The train is set to be ready for public use in 2022 and will reduce the journey hours from eight to four from Gujarat to Mumbai with 217 mph.

There are six more routes other than Ahmedabad-Mumbai proposed to be set up. Of course, bullet trains might be a good option for the busy cities where people struggle to travel on their daily work. So, yes there will be a bullet train zooming through Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and did you say Bengaluru?

Of course, not! In the southern India, only Chennai has got the bullet train. Bengaluru is not in the picture.

Here are the routes proposed for a bullet train in India:

Ahmedabad- Mumbai; Delhi-Kolkata; Delhi-Mumbai; Mumbai-Chennai; Delhi-Chandighar; Mumbai-Nagpur and Delhi-Nagpur.

Why has Karnataka missed out on the bullet train opportunity? Is it because of the ruling Congress government? Siddaramaiah government taking credit for Namma Metro has made the BJP see red. Especially at this time when Congress is boasting of various schemes like Annabhagya, Ksheerabhagya, Namma Metro and others, it would have been a strong point for BJP if they had got allocated a bullet train for Bengaluru which is an IT BT hub.

However, more than the failure of the Centre, it looks like the state leaders of BJP did not press for the facility. There can be another reason that only one place in South was allocated this facility and it was taken by Chennai as BJP is trying to make an inroad into the state. Bullet train might be their tactics to woo the people and leaders of Tamil Nadu.

However, be it in the case of Cauvery water struggle or Mahadayi water distribution the Centre is keeping Karnataka at bay. 

There has been a lot of noise while starting the work on the bullet train. Will it be a reality or just be like the Talgo experiment, only time can tell.

   

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