Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday said that construction work at the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) station—set to be the origin point for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train—is progressing at a fast pace.

Vaishnaw, who visited the under-construction underground station at BKC, reviewed the progress alongside officials from the National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), Central Railway, and Western Railway. The BKC station is part of the over 500 km-long Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor project.

He informed reporters that the lowest B3 basement level has been completed, and wall strengthening work is underway. “The station wall work has started, and simultaneously, tunnel work is also progressing very fast,” the minister said, PTI reported.

Vaishnaw noted that the BKC station will be a multi-storey structure. "The operational areas will be located on levels B1 to B3. The B3 will serve as a train parking area, B2 will house operational functions, and B1 with the ground level will serve passengers. Work is underway to build this world-class station," he added.

NHSRCL officials added that approximately 76 per cent of the excavation at the BKC station site has been completed.

The Railway Minister also said that construction work beyond the tunnel section at Shil Phata has gained significant momentum following land acquisition in Maharashtra.

After inspecting the BKC site, Vaishnaw headed to Navi Mumbai where he assessed infrastructure work at Panvel and Juinagar railway stations. Speaking at Panvel, he said the government is committed to modernising Mumbai’s rail network with a long-term vision.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has guided us to work with a vision for the next 50 years. In that spirit, we are constructing a major coaching terminal at Panvel, which will serve as an origin point for trains,” Vaishnaw said.

The new terminal, he added, is being built to handle increasing passenger loads and improve operational efficiency.

Vaishnaw also reviewed the dedicated freight corridor, terming it a critical project nearing completion. He said the corridor’s connection to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) is advancing well and will help divert goods trains away from busy passenger lines, thereby improving train movement across Mumbai’s suburban and express routes.

“The aim is not just expansion, but transformation—making Indian Railways more efficient, safer, and future-ready,” he emphasised.

The total cost of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor is pegged at Rs 1.08 lakh crore. The central government will contribute Rs 10,000 crore, while Gujarat and Maharashtra will each contribute Rs 5,000 crore. The remaining funds will be sourced through a loan from Japan at an interest rate of just 0.1 per cent.

Last week, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated that the bullet train project is expected to become operational by 2028.

(With PTI inputs)