The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Railway
Corridor, which is currently under construction.
Once its operation begins, the line is expected tohave wide-ranging impacts, from improved
convenience to a reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions and revitalization of the surrounding area.
NHSRCLTHE MUMBAI - THE FIRST STEPAHMEDABAD TOWARD
A SAFE,
BULLET TRAIN: SUSTAINABLE
SOCIETY
Under the G7 Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Railway
Corridor project is moving forward in India. Adopting Japan’s Shinkansen bullet train technology, the project aims tobe as successful a model as the Delhi Metro, which brought multiple changes to society and industry.
Japan’s railways are renowned
for their high level of safety andprecise technological capabilities,
as well as their punctualoperations. A prominent example
is the Shinkansen bullet train.
Countries around the world have
likewise introduced high-speed
rail systems in recent years, aiming
to upgrade the convenience of
their transportation networks.
One of them, India, is adopting
Japan’s bullet train system forthe first time for its MumbaiAhmedabad High Speed Railway
Corridor (MAHSR), a 508-km-long, high-speed rail line that willlink the western metropolises of
Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
Using rolling stock based on
the Shinkansen’s E5 series, whichboasts speeds of up to 320 km/h,
the new train will sharply reduce
travel time between the two cities,
from the current six hours to just
two hours. Air travel, which is
now the preferred method forcompleting the route, is projected
to see more than 60% of its
customers shift to the new bullet
train, with the flexibility to get on
and off en route and easy access toother transportation.
MAHSR is one of the projects
promoted under the Partnershipfor Global Infrastructure andInvestment (PGII), a shared
G7 commitment launched in
2022 to advance public andprivate investments in sustainable,inclusive, resilient and quality
infrastructure. Through partnershipwith governments, the private
sector, and financial institutions,
the G7 aims to mobilize up to600 billion dollars by 2027, inorder to narrow the infrastructure
investment gap in partnercountries. Japan is also delivering
infrastructure investment aroundthe world to mobilize more than
65 billion dollars in infrastructureassistance and private capital overthe same period.
The process of building ahuge piece of infrastructure ina country that differs in culture
and mindsets is a herculeantask. However, Japan’s forte in
the MAHSR project is its richexperience promoting subway
construction projects acrossIndia for more than two decades.
Notably, the track recordand expertise gained throughconstruction of the Delhi Metro,
Japan’s first project in India, forma strong foundation.
A good example is safety
awareness at construction sites,
which was low in India at
the time. Japanese constructioncontractors, consultants, and Japan
International Cooperation Agency( JICA) staff worked together

Left: ABE Reiko, Corporate Officer of Oriental Consultants Global and Chairperson of Oriental
Consultants India, worked in tunnel construction in places such as Norway and Taiwan. Since 2007, she has
worked as a consultant on subway construction projects in New Delhi, the capital of India, among other cities.
Right: Abe (left) making the rounds of the Delhi Metro with a local staff member at the time of its
construction. The project focused on local human resource development in anticipation of post-openingoperation. “Our mission is to see the local staff become self-sufficient. Our work will only be done when
they tell us they no longer need a consultant,” said Abe. ORIENTAL CONSULTANTS GLOBAL

to distribute helmets and otherpersonal protective equipment(PPE) to around 40,000 Delhi
Metro construction workers, butthese went unworn at first. To
combat this, with the cooperationof the Delhi Metro Rail
Corporation, a special regulation
was enacted to prevent entry toconstruction sites without PPE.
That resulted in a big, positive
impact, and also led to thepractice being adopted by othersubway projects. “It is crucial totake measures that consider acountry’s unique environmentand culture,” said ABE Reiko,Corporate Officer of Oriental
Consultants Global Co., Ltd.,
who was involved in the Delhi
Metro project and whose
company is also one of the firms
consulting on the MAHSR.
Over 20 years since launchingin 2002, the Delhi Metro is now
one of the largest subway systems
in the world, with a daily averageof more than 5 million passengers.
And, with some of the local staff

who were involved in its launchnow transferring their knowhow
to other subway projects, themetro has led to a boost in theoverall level of civil engineeringin the country. For the MAHSR
project, domestic firms mainly
handle the phase of civil
construction work, rather thanrelying on foreign companies.
“One day,” recounted Abe,“when I was traveling in an auto
rickshaw, we got stuck in traffic
due to subway construction. The
driver then told me with pride,‘Madam, this is our Metro! Great,
isn’t it?’ I have never been so happy.
His words inspire and motivate
me even now.” Just like the Delhi
Metro, the MAHSR bullet train
project has the potential to bringgreat change and growth to thecountry as a whole. “Eventually,our aspiration is to spur thedevelopment of a domestically
self-supporting system. We will
try our best so that one day, Indianpeople will say, ‘Madam, this is
our bullet train!’”

Due to serious security problems within India’s public transportation system, baggage
screening similar to that at an airport is conducted at the entrance to each station ofthe Delhi Metro (top), and security guards are positioned on the platforms. What ismore, the introduction of women-only carriages (bottom) has led to an increase in
the number of women working at companies located near to subway stations, having
a significant impact on the overall employment rate. GETTY IMAGES