Indian Railways has announced plans to launch high-speed bullet trains to connect the country’s major cities, as part of the 2014 rail budget.
The Indian Government is expected to invest approximately €12.3m in the construction of a new diamond quadrilateral high-speed network that will connect cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai.
India Rail Minister Sadananda Gowda was quoted by The Economic Times as saying: "We will raise train speeds between several cities to 160km/h-200 km/h."
The first high-speed bullet train will run between Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
It is reported that an estimated €7.7bn is required to construct a high-speed rail line between Mumbai-Ahmadabad.
The government also plans to install unmanned crossings, as well as ultrasonic devices to detect rail fractures and automatic closing of doors both in mainline and suburban coaches.
Image: WAP-5 30022 rests at Bhopal. Photo: courtesy of Shan Fernandes.
