Lok Sabha Question No. 478 (STARRED), answered on 2026-03-25
Subject: Growth Connector-High Speed Rail Corridors
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Shri Dileshwar Kamait, Shri Sunil Kumar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 478

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 25.03.2026

## GROWTH CONNECTOR-HIGH SPEED RAIL CORRIDORS

- *478. SHRI DILESHWAR KAMAIT: SHRI SUNIL KUMAR:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  Government  has  finalised  the  execution  plan  for  seven  new 'Growth Connector' high-speed rail corridors announced in Budget 202627 and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the details of number of Vande Bharat Sleeper rakes which are likely to be  operational  by  the  end  of  the  year  2026  including  the  strategy  for their deployment on routes exceeding 1,000 km;
- (c) the details of the progress made towards the goal of launching Vande Bharat  4.0  with  a  design  speed  of  250  kmph  for  the  upcoming  highspeed corridors;
- (d) whether  regional cuisines and AI-driven passenger services are proposed  to  be  introduced  across  all  premium  train  sets  by  the  year 2027 and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e)  whether  the  Government  is  planning  to  construct  a  rail  corridor  from Darjeeling, West Bengal to Haridwar via Narkatiaganj, West Champaran and Gorakhpur and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND

ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) to (e): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (e)  OF  STARRED QUESTION NO. 478 TO BE ANSWERED ON 25.03.2026 IN LOK SABHA (a)  to  (e):  Presently,  the  Mumbai-Ahmedabad  High  Speed  Rail  (MAHSR) Project  (508  km)  is  under  execution.  The  Project  is  passing  through  the States of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Union Territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli with 12 stations planned at Mumbai, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Billimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad and Sabarmati.

Entire land (1389.5 Ha.) for MAHSR project has been acquired. All Statutory Clearances have been obtained.  All  1651  utilities  have  been  shifted.  The delay  in  land  acquisition  in  the  State  of  Maharashtra  has  impacted  the project till 2021. The land acquisition picked up in 2022 in Maharashtra.

## The progress of various major items so far is as under:

| Item      | Progress   |
|-----------|------------|
| Piers     | 430 kms.   |
| Girder    | 341 kms.   |
| Track Bed | 174 kms.   |
| OHE Masts | 153 kms.   |

## The progress of stations is given below:-

|   S.No. | Station      | Status                                                                                                 |
|---------|--------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|       1 | Sabarmati    | Foundation works completed, Platform slab & roof structural works and finishing works are in progress. |
|       2 | Ahmedabad    | Structural works completed and finishing works                                                         |
|       3 | Anand/Nadiad | have been taken up.                                                                                    |
|       4 | Vadodara     | Foundation work completed, structural works and finishing works have been taken up.                    |
|       5 | Bharuch      |                                                                                                        |
|       6 | Surat        | Structural works completed and finishing works                                                         |
|       7 | Bilimora     | have been taken up.                                                                                    |
|       8 | Vapi         |                                                                                                        |
|       9 | Boisar       | Foundation works have been taken up and in                                                             |
|      10 | Virar        | advanced stage. Structural works have been                                                             |

|   11 | Thane        | taken up.                                                                                          |
|------|--------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|   12 | BKC (Mumbai) | This is an underground station. Foundation works almost completed and Base Slab has been taken up. |

## The progress on the River Bridges is as under:-

| S. No.                      | River Name                                                            | Status       |
|-----------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------|
| 1 Sabarmati                 | Sub-Structure work completed, Superstructure work has been taken up.  | River (480m) |
| Meshwa River (120m)         | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 2            |
| Vatrak River (280m)         | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 3            |
| Mohar (Shedhi) River (160m) | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 4            |
| Mahi River (720m)           | 11 out of 12 wells completed; 5 spans launched                        | 5            |
| Vishwamitri River (80m)     | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 6            |
| Dhadhar River (120m)        |                                                                       | 7            |
| Narmada River (1366m)       | 21 out of 25 wells completed; 4 spans launched                        | 8            |
| Kim River                   | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 9 (120m)     |
| 10 Tapi River               | Foundation work has been taken up, 10 out of 12 wells completed       | (720m)       |
| Mindhola River (240m)       | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 11           |
| 12 Purna River              | Bridge construction completed.                                        | (360m)       |
| 13 Ambika River             | Bridge construction completed.                                        | (200m)       |
| 14 Venganiya                | Bridge construction completed.                                        | River (200m) |
| 15 Kaveri River             | Bridge construction completed.                                        | (120m)       |
| 16 Kharera River            | Bridge construction completed.                                        | (120m)       |
| Auranga River               | Bridge construction completed.                                        | 17 (320m)    |
| 18 Par River                | Bridge construction completed.                                        | (320m)       |
| 19 Kolak River (160m)       | Bridge construction completed.                                        |              |
| 20 Daman Ganga (360m)       | Bridge construction completed.                                        | River        |
| 21 Darotha River            | Bridge construction completed.                                        | (80m)        |
| Jagani River (360m)         | Foundation works have been completed                                  | 22           |
| 23 Vaitarna River (2320m)   | 12 Pile Cap and 11 Pier (out of 58) completed.                        |              |
| Ulhas River Branch (120m)   | Temporary Access Bridge (TAB) completed to start the foundation work. | 24           |

25

## Desai Khadi River Bridge

## (400m)

Geo-technical Investigation (GTI) has been completed and Design work has been taken up.

The work of the under-sea tunnel (approximately 21 km) has commenced, out  of  which  4.8  km  of  tunnel  between  Ghansoli  and  Shilphata  in Maharashtra has been completed.

Further, to strengthen national transport infrastructure, provide a fillip to regional connectivity, economic growth, tourism, investment and employment  generation,  and  encourage  modal  shift  from  road  and  air transport to  rail,  the  Government  has  announced  the  development of the following seven new High-Speed Rail (HSR) corridors in the Union Budget 2026-27: -

- (i)
- Mumbai-Pune
- (ii) Pune-Hyderabad
- (iii) Hyderabad-Bengaluru
- (iv) Hyderabad-Chennai
- (v)
- Chennai-Bengaluru
- (vi)
- (vii)
- Delhi-Varanasi
- Varanasi-Siliguri

Being highly capital intensive, the decision to sanction any HSR Corridor/ Project  depends  on  many  factors  such  as  outcome  of  DPR,  technoeconomic feasibility studies and availability of resources such as financing options etc.

## Vande Bharat Sleeper Express:

For long distance travel the Sleeper variant of Vande Bharat Express has been indigenously designed and developed by Indian Railways. Presently, 2 Vande  Bharat  Sleeper  services  are  in  operation  on  the  Indian  Railway network. The First Vande Bharat Sleeper service viz. 27575/27576 Howrah-

Kamakhya Vande Bharat Sleeper Express has commenced regular operation w.e.f. 22.01.2026.

Broad technological  advancements and safety  features  provided  in  these Vande Bharat Sleeper Trains are as below:

-  Jerk-Free Semi permanent couplers and Anti Climbers.
-  Fitted with KAVACH.
-  Higher acceleration with design/operating speed of 180/160 KMPH.
-  Crashworthy Design of Car body complying with EN standards.
-  Fire barrier doors at the end of each coach for compliance of Fire Safety standards.
-  Aerosol based fire detection and suppression system in electrical cabinets and lavatories.
-  Regenerative braking system for energy efficiency.
-  Air conditioning units provided with indigenously developed UV-C lamp based disinfection system for deactivating 99% harmful bacteria from conditioned air to improve the hygiene standards inside the passenger area.
-  Centrally controlled Automatic Plug Doors and fully sealed wider gangways.
-  CCTVs in all coaches.
-  Emergency talk-back unit for communication between Passenger and Train Manager/Loco Pilot in case of emergency.
-  For Divyangjan passengers, special lavatory in the driving coaches on each end.
-  Centralized Coach Monitoring System for better condition monitoring of passenger amenities such as Air conditioning, Saloon Lighting etc.
-  Ergonomically designed ladder for ease of climbing on to upper berths.

Regional Cuisines in Trains:

The Ministry of Railways vide Commercial Circular No. 25 of 2022 has given IRCTC flexibility  to  Indian  Railway  Catering  and  Tourism  Corporation  Ltd. (IRCTC)  to  customize  the  menu  in  trains  to  include  items  of  regional cuisines,  seasonal  delicacies  and  health  food  options,  including  milletbased products.

Under the above mandate, the menu has been designed by IRCTC based on passenger feedback.

IRCTC  has  introduced  regional  cuisines  from  time  to  time  to  offer  a personalised  experience  to  passengers  of  different  regions.  Some  of  the regional cuisines introduced in trains are as under:-

|   S. No. | States         | Cuisine Items                                                                                                            |
|----------|----------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|        1 | Odisha         | Dalma, Chenna Poda                                                                                                       |
|        2 | Tamil Nadu     | Set Dosai, Palakatti Chettinad                                                                                           |
|        3 | Karnataka      | Medu Vada                                                                                                                |
|        4 | Rajasthan      | Pyaz Kachori                                                                                                             |
|        5 | Maharashtra    | Vada Pav                                                                                                                 |
|        6 | West Bengal    | Machher Jhol                                                                                                             |
|        7 | Gujarat        | Thepla                                                                                                                   |
|        8 | Jharkhand      | Singara, Fuluri, Aloo Chokha, Aloo Parwal                                                                                |
|        9 | Madhya Pradesh | Kanda Poha, Indori Poha, Sev Tamatar Sabji, Ajwain Paratha, Ragi Bhakhri, Patra Bhagar, Khoya Chicken, Ragi Thepla, Bhey |

Introduction  of  these  regional/local  dishes  has  given  passengers  the opportunity  to  enjoy  authentic  local  flavors  and  connect  with  the  local culture.

## Darjeeling-Haridwar Route:

Darjeeling  and  Haridwar  are  already  connected  with  the  existing  railway network  via  Narkatiaganj,  West  Champaran  and  Gorakhpur.  To  further improve  rail  connectivity  in  the  region,  the  following  works  have  been sanctioned:

|   S. No. | Project/Section                                       | Status              |
|----------|-------------------------------------------------------|---------------------|
|        1 | Siliguri - New Jalpaiguri doubling (7 Km)             | DPR prepared        |
|        2 | New Jalpaiguri - Aluabari Road 3rd & 4th Line (57 Km) | Recently sanctioned |
|        3 | Aluabari Road - Kumedpur 3rd & 4th Line (136 Km)      | DPR prepared        |
|        4 | Siliguri - Thakurganj Doubling (56 Km)                | DPR prepared        |
|        5 | Thakurganj - Aluabari Doubling (20 Km)                | Recently sanctioned |
|        6 | Mukuria - Katihar Doubling (35 Km)                    | Work taken up       |
|        7 | Kumedpur - Katihar Doubling (30 Km)                   | Work taken up       |
|        8 | Katihar - Barauni 3rd & 4th Line (181 Km)             | DPR prepared        |
|        9 | Barauni - Bachwara 3rd & 4th Line (32 Km)             | Work taken up       |
|       10 | Bachwara - Gorakhpur 3rd & 4th Line (310 Km)          | DPR prepared        |
|       11 | Darbhanga - Narkatiaganj Doubling (38 Km)             | Work taken up       |
|       12 | Valmikinagar - Gorakhpur Doubling (96 Km)             | Work taken up       |
|       13 | Gorakhpur - Gonda 3rd & 4th Line (152 Km)             | DPR prepared        |
|       14 | Gonda - Burhwal 4th Line (56 Km)                      | Recently sanctioned |
|       15 | Burhwal - Sitapur 3rd & 4th Line (97 Km)              | DPR prepared        |
|       16 | Sitapur - Moradabad 3rd & 4th Line (248 Km)           | DPR prepared        |

Sanctioning of any railway project depends upon many parameters/factors which include the following:

-  Anticipated traffic projections and remunerativeness of the proposed route
-  First and last mile connectivity provided by the project

-  Connection of missing links and providing additional route
-  Augmentation of congested/saturated lines
-  Demands  raised  by  State  Governments/Central  Ministries/Public representatives
-  Railway's own operational requirements
-  Socio-economic considerations
-  Overall availability of funds

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