The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor (MAHSR), India’s inaugural bullet train project, is significantly boosting the cement and construction sectors while creating employment opportunities.

Official data reveals that the project consumes approximately 20,000 cubic meters of cement concrete daily, equivalent to constructing eight 10-storey buildings. This massive undertaking spans Gujarat and Maharashtra, where a total of 78 lakh cubic meters of concreting has been completed using 13 lakh large transit mixers.

The National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) stated, “This scale of operations has been made possible by the dedicated efforts of about 20,000 workers daily over the past two-and-a-half years, resulting in substantial job creation.”

Spanning 508 kilometers with 12 stations, 24 river bridges, 8 mountain tunnels, and an undersea tunnel, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project is described by NHSRCL as a remarkable feat of infrastructure under construction.

The corporation highlighted the adoption of advanced construction technologies for the project, including the installation of 65 specially designed concrete batching plants along the corridor.

The BJP, in its 2024 Lok Sabha election manifesto, reiterated its commitment to expanding high-speed rail networks across India following the launch of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor. Railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw previously announced that the bullet train service between Surat and Bilimora is expected to commence by 2026.

Initially estimated at Rs 1 lakh crore in 2015, 81% of the MAHSR project is funded by the Government of Japan, with the remainder sourced from equity provided by the Government of India (50%), and the governments of Gujarat and Maharashtra (25% each).

Commencing in September 2017 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, the country’s first bullet train project aimed for completion by December 2023. However, various challenges such as land acquisition delays, utility relocations, legal proceedings, unforeseen circumstances, and weather conditions have impacted its progress.