The National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) on Thursday signed the country’s largest ever government funded civil contract of Rs 24,000 crore for the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project with infrastructure major Larsen and Toubro (L&T).
The NHSRCL has awarded work for 325 km falling in Gujarat to L&T. Company will finish the job in four years, said L&T’s CEO. He added that it is one of the largest contracts ever in India and certainly the largest for L&T. The construction company said they have deployed people on ground to start work. Speaking on the occasion, the Japanese ambassador to India Satoshi Suzuki said the contract for such a mammoth infrastructure project has been awarded at a time when it was required to accelerate economic activities.
He said the project will not only help in transfer of Japanese technologies to India but it will also transform urban development along its corridor.
PM Modi had asked the railways to go ahead with the work in Gujarat portion and complete it rather than waiting for Maharashtra to get the required land for this flagship project. After completion of this first bullet train project, the government will take up more such train corridors on seven more routes. The bullet train project is facing delays in Maharashtra and in Gujarat the process of land acquisition is in full swing and official said it would be on time.
