There has been a major change in the ambitious Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train plan. Talks between India and Japan have broken down over the import price of Bullet Train and change in the rules of the scheme.
Earlier, under this scheme, bullet trains were to be imported from Japan, but after recent incidents, India has changed its strategy. India has adopted a Make-in-India approach for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train plan. BEML Limited-Megha Servo Drives joint venture was awarded the contract for the project in September. Vande Bharat trains are manufactured by this joint venture. Of course, no final decision has been taken in this matter as efforts are on to resolve this impasse with Japan.
Seven years after the launch of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor project, India is unlikely to import Shinkansen or bullet trains from Japan. India is now unlikely to import bullet trains from Japan after talks over price talks and changes in project rules failed. Talks between the Indian and Japanese governments have failed over issues such as bullet train import prices, inordinate delays in land acquisition and changes in the technical regulations of the joint venture.
Although talks between India and Japan over changes in import prices and rules for bullet trains have failed, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav and other government officials visited Japan in September to resolve the dispute with Japan. However, no final decision has been taken yet in this matter. On the other hand, an official said, importing bullet trains from Japan is very expensive. Also, since it is imported from Japan, a Japanese company will have to be called in for lifetime maintenance, which will also be expensive.
