Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor project achieved a milestone on Thursday after the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) finished the construction of 100 km of viaduct and 250 km of pier work. In a statement, NHSRCL said the milestone was achieved through launching of 40-metre long 'full span box girders' and 'segmental girders'.
A viaduct is a long bridge-like structure, supported on piers or towers, carrying a road or railway track over a valley or gorge. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw uploaded a video on X, formerly known as Twitter, to share information of the feat.
According to NHSRCL, the 100 km of viaduct constructed include bridges over six Gujarat rivers -- Par and Auranga in Valsad district, and Purna, Mindhola, Ambika, and Venganiya in Navsari district.
The NHSRCL mentioned that the project's first girder was launched on November 25, 2021, and within six months, the first kilometre of viaduct was completed by June 30, 2022.
A significant milestone was reached on April 22, 2023, with the completion of 50 kilometres of viaduct construction, followed by an additional 50 kilometres in the subsequent six months.
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"The Full Span Launching technique (FSLM), where 40-metre long box girders are launched by state-of-the-art equipment, is being used along with span-by-span launching of segments. FSLM is 10 times faster than the span-by-span method, which is normally used to build metro viaducts," the statement further said.
The NHSRCL stated that installation of noise barriers along the constructed viaduct have also commenced.
"Besides this, the laying of the first reinforced concrete (RC) track bed for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed rail corridor track system as used in the Japanese Shinkansen has also started in Surat," the NHSRCL informed.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor is being constructed at a cost of Rs 1.08 lakh crore. According to the shareholding pattern, the Union Government will contribute Rs 10,000 crore to NHSRCL and Gujarat and Maharashtra will shell out Rs 5,000 crore each.
The remaining cost will be covered through a loan from Japan at an interest of 0.1 percent. The foundation stone of the bullet train project was laid in Ahmedabad in September 2017. The train is expected to cover the 500 km distance between the two cities in around two hours.
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