Can’t Do Anything About It: Japan on Delay in Bullet Train Project

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe laid the foundation stone for India’s first bullet train in September

(Photo: PTI)

Japan on Monday, 11 March expressed concern over the pace of of land acquisition for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project, The Indian Express (IE) reported.

The Consul General of Japan Ryoji Noda told IE that the December 2018 deadline has been missed but could not tell if this would delay the scheduled completion of the project by 2022.

“The Japanese side cannot do anything about it (the delay),” he told The Indian Express on the sidelines of an event. “So we are waiting for the Gujarat and Maharashtra governments to procure the land,” he added.

A delegation of farmers in February met Congress chief Rahul Gandhi in Valsad and sought the inclusion of their demands, including the resolution of land acquisition related issues of Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project, in his party's manifesto,PTI reported.

The Gandhi scion assured the farmers that his party will look into their request.

The farmers, under the banner of Gujarat Khedut Samaj, met Gandhi after he addressed a rally here and gave a memorandum of 24 demands to the Congress chief.

Farmers have been protesting against the acquisition of land for the Bullet train and other government projects in the state.

They are seeking to resolve the issues of land acquisition and environment for the Bullet train project, Vadodara-Mumbai expressway, dedicated freight corridor and industrial corridor projects.

VK Yadav, Chairman of the Railway Board on 1 March said that the work on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train will be completed by 2023, IANS reported.

He said the Indian Railways will achieve the target of 100 percent electrification of its broad-gauge network by 2021-22.

"The railways is planning to install the most advanced signalling system. There is provision of Rs 77,912 crore in 2018-19," he said, adding that in the first phase, four sections of 640 km will be taken up for the installation of European Train Control System L2 (ETCS L2) on a trial basis.

(With inputs from The Indian Express, IANS and PTI)