Bullet Train: Concourse-level Slab of Ahmedabad Station Completed

The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) on Tuesday said the construction of the concourse-level slab of a station for the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train at Kalupur here has been completed.

The station, with two platforms, will be at a height of 33.73 meters from the ground, spread over 38,000 square metres above platform numbers 10, 11 and 12 of the existing station of the Western Railway, the NHSRCL said in a release.

The 435-metre long slab of the concourse of the bullet train station has been completed, it said.

The design of the bullet train station draws on the rich cultural and historical ethos of the city. Its roof depicts a canvas for hundreds of kites whereas the facade has a pattern inspired by the intricate lattice work of Sidi Sayed mosque’s jaali window, the release said.

To ensure seamless integration of the bullet train station with other modes of transport, an integrated building for passenger transit is planned on the east side of the existing railway station, the NHSRCL said.

It had recently announced that all the land required for the Gujarat segment of the ambitious project has been acquired. The last parcel of land in Gujarat was acquired at Kathore village in Surat district in September.

The government aims to launch the high speed train in the Surat-Bilimora stretch in south Gujarat by 2026.

The project, funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) with a soft loan of Rs 88,000 crore, was launched by prime minister Narendra Modi and then Japanese PM Shinzo Abe in September 2017.

The bullet train is expected to cover the distance of 508 km between Mumbai and Ahmedabad in about three-and-half hours.

The Rs 1.10 lakh crore project was expected to be completed by 2022, but faced hurdles in land acquisition.