BEML wins ₹867 crore contract for India’s first bullet trains
BEML wins ₹866.87 crore contract to build two high-speed trainsets for India's first bullet train between Ahmedabad and Mumbai, with the first leg launching later this year.
India’s first bullet train project is finally nearing launch, almost a decade after Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid its foundation stone. The high-speed rail link between Ahmedabad and Mumbai is expected to start operations from the later half of this year on its first leg between Surat and Bilimora, with the full route targeted for completion in 2030.
The project’s ₹1.1 lakh crore funding has come from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) is developing it with Japanese technical support. Now Indian Railways plans to produce the trainsets indigenously. The Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai has awarded BEML Limited an ₹866.87 crore contract to design, manufacture and commission two eight-coach high-speed trainsets, according to a Times of India report. BEML will develop two prototypes capable of reaching 280 kmph.
The designs for the indigenously built bullet trains are being finalised, the report said. The trains will be fully air-conditioned chair cars with infotainment systems, reclining and rotatable seats, and dedicated facilities for divyangjans. Each of the two trainsets is expected to cost between ₹390 crore and ₹400 crore. Production is underway at BEML’s ‘Aditya’ High-Speed Rail Complex in Bengaluru, a facility set up solely for this project. The trainsets carry the codename B-28 and will be manufactured using precision-driven technologies.
The bullet train sets are being designed specifically for India’s tropical monsoon climate, with heat and dust resistance, unlike trains operating in cold climates in Japan and Europe. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the next generation of bullet trains would be designed for speeds of 350 kmph. Indian Railways is also planning seven additional high-speed rail routes, including Bengaluru-Chennai, Bengaluru-Hyderabad and Bengaluru-Pune-Mumbai.
The BEML contract marks a key step in localising high-speed rail manufacturing. The company is listed on Indian stock exchanges and the contract size of nearly ₹867 crore represents a significant order for its rolling stock division.
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