Work to build bullet train's origin station progressing fast: Vaishnaw

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday reviewed the progress of the ambitious Bullet Train project and said that the construction of the trains origin station in BandraKurla Complex BKC in Mumbai was progressing very fast the PTI reportedVaishnaw visited the construction site of the underground station at Bandra Kurla Complex BKC and assessed the progress of the work completed so farAccording to the PTI Vaishnaw also inspected ongoing infrastructure works at Panvel and Juinagar railway stations in Navi Mumbai and assessed the progress of key railway and freight projectsAt BKC Vaishnaw was accompanied by officials from the National HighSpeed Rail Corporation Limited NHSRCL which is executing the over 500 kmlong MumbaiAhmedabad Bullet Train project along with representatives from Central Railway and Western RailwayVaishnaw said that the lowest B3 basement level and the strengthening of the station walls have been completedThe work at the bullet trains origin station in BKC is progressing very fast The station wall work has been started and simultaneously the tunnel work is progressing very fast the Railway Minister stated reported PTIBeyond the tunnel portion Shil Phata all ongoing works are moving at a high speed in the Maharashtra section following the land acquisition the minister addedThe minister said a multistorey structure is planned at the BKC stationThe operational areas will be located on levels B1 to B3 The B3 will serve as a train parking area B2 will house operational functions and B1 with the ground level will serve passengers Work is underway to build this worldclass station the minister further stated reported PTINHSRCL officials said that approximately 76 per cent of the excavation work at the BKC bullet train station has been completedFollowing the inspection the Minister proceeded to Pune where he was scheduled to flag off two longdistance trains later in the eveningThe total cost of the MumbaiAhmedabad HighSpeed Rail Corridor project is estimated at Rs 108 lakh crore As per the shareholding arrangement the Government of India will contribute Rs 10000 crore while the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra will each contribute Rs 5000 croreThe remaining funding will be provided through a loan from Japan at 01 per cent interestMaharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had last week said that the bullet train project will become operational by 2028Addressing media persons after visiting Panvel railway station Vaishnaw stated that the governments longterm vision for expanding Mumbais rail capacity and modernising its stations to meet the demands of the coming decades reported PTIPrime Minister Narendra Modi has guided us to work with a vision for the next 50 years In that spirit we are constructing a major coaching terminal at Panvel which will serve as an origin point for trains Vaishnaw said reported PTIVaishnaw said that the construction of the coaching terminal is advancing rapidly and it is being built to support increased passenger flow and operational efficiencyHe said the PanvelKarjat suburban rail link a key component of easing pressure on the Mumbai rail network is also making steady progressVaishnaw also reviewed the dedicated freight corridor which he described as being in its final laps of developmentOnce operational it will divert goods trains off the main passenger lines significantly enhancing the movement of local and express trains in the regionThe freight corridors connection to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust JNPT is progressing well This will ease pressure on Mumbais passenger rail lines and boost logistics efficiency the Railway Minister added reported PTIThe railway minister said that efforts are underway to implement the best international railway technology in India with Panvel and other nodes in the Mumbai region poised to benefit from these innovationsOur goal is not just expansion but transformation and making Indian Railways more efficient safer and futureready the minister stated reported PTIWith PTI inputsatOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params