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Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav will on Sunday begin the process of digging the underground tunnel to be built from Vikhroli to Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) station in Mumbai. This will be the first time that Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) is being used for this work under the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project.

Knews Desk- Continuous work is being done towards making rail travel easier and faster in the country. In this sequence, an important update has come out for the passengers. The construction of the tunnel of India’s first bullet train project being built between Mumbai and Ahmedabad is going to start soon. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav will launch the excavation of the underground tunnel from Vikhroli to Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) station in Mumbai on Sunday (July 5).

‘Tunnel Boring Machine’ (TBM) is being used for the first time in this project. This tunnel, to be built under the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed ​​Rail Corridor, will be a total of 20.37 kilometers long, of which about 7 kilometers will pass under the sea.

Steps towards modernizing rail travel

Continuous work is being done to make rail travel in the country faster and convenient. In this sequence, an important update to the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project has come out, in which the work of underground tunnel construction is progressing rapidly. This project is being developed as the country’s first high-speed rail line.

Construction of 20.37 km long tunnel: A total of 20.37 km long underground tunnel is being built under this project. About 7 kilometers of it will pass under the sea, which makes it technically very challenging. The tunnel is being prepared at a depth of about 65 meters from ground level.

Bullet train will run at a speed of 320 kilometers per hour

After completion of this project, bullet trains will run at a speed of about 320 kilometers per hour on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route. With such a high speed, the time taken to cover the distance between the two cities will be significantly reduced, due to which long journeys can be completed in just a few hours. This is considered to be a major technological change in the country’s rail network.

Along with high speed, passengers will get a travel experience equipped with modern facilities, in which comfort, safety and time saving will be prominent. After the commencement of this high-speed corridor, not only will the traffic between Mumbai and Ahmedabad become faster, but trade, employment and connectivity will also get a new boost.

Construction work will be done with special TBM machines

For this construction work, two Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM) specially designed in Germany were brought to India by sea route in March 2026. These machines are being operated by Afcons Infrastructure Limited. A major part of the total tunnel will be prepared with the help of these machines, while some part has already been completed with drill-and-blast technology.

Tunnel will connect BKC and Shilphata

This underground tunnel will connect Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) and Shilphata. During construction, the first TBM will work in the direction from Vikhroli to BKC, while the second machine will excavate from Savli to Vikhroli. It also includes the subsea portion, which further complicates the project.

Railway Minister will start operations

According to the National High-Speed ​​Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav will start the operation of these TBM machines by pressing a button. This step is being considered as the beginning of the next major phase of the project.