The proposed Bengaluru-Pune bullet train corridor could be among the next high-speed rail projects announced by the Centre, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Sunday, while also announcing that a Bengaluru-Mangaluru Vande Bharat Express would be introduced within the next few weeks.
Vaishnaw made the comments after flagging off the inaugural run of the Vande Bharat Sleeper Express between Bengaluru and Mumbai. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved 4,000 km of bullet train corridors, with another 3,000 km expected to be announced in the coming years.
“Another 3,000 kilometres of bullet train corridors will be announced in the coming years, and there will be many more corridors like Bengaluru-Pune, which covers entire Karnataka, from Bengaluru towards Hubballi, all the way to Pune. That corridor will be covered as well,” Vaishnaw said.
The minister’s remarks indicate the corridor’s possible inclusion in a future expansion of India’s high-speed rail network. However, the statement did not provide a final approval, construction schedule, route alignment, project cost or funding structure for the Bengaluru-Pune corridor.
Vaishnaw also referred to a proposed southern high-speed rail corridor connecting Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Amaravati and Chennai. He said the project had already received the Prime Minister’s approval and would link major economic and technology centres in southern India.
According to the minister, the proposed travel time between Bengaluru and Chennai would be 73 minutes, while the Bengaluru-Hyderabad journey would take two hours and 10 minutes. He said the corridor would bring the economies of southern states closer together and create a larger regional economic network.
The immediate operational announcement concerned the Bengaluru-Mangaluru Vande Bharat service. Vaishnaw said electrification and testing on the route had been completed and that the train would be introduced within the next few weeks.
“Within the next few weeks, we will have Mangaluru to Bengaluru Vande Bharat. Bengaluru to Mangaluru Vande Bharat, we will very soon have, and that will connect the entire region with very good, world-class high-speed connectivity,” he said.
The minister identified Mangaluru, Udupi and the coastal belt extending towards Karwar and Goa as important destinations requiring improved rail connectivity. The proposed service would add a faster intercity rail option between Bengaluru and coastal Karnataka, although details such as the timetable, number of stops, fares and frequency were not announced.
The event was attended by Union ministers Pralhad Joshi and H D Kumaraswamy, Ministers of State V Somanna and Shobha Karandlaje, and Members of Parliament Tejasvi Surya, P C Mohan and C N Manjunath, among others.
Vaishnaw also referred to railway station redevelopment, Bengaluru’s suburban rail network and metro expansion while outlining the government’s broader infrastructure agenda. The next formal milestones for the proposed high-speed corridors and the Bengaluru-Mangaluru Vande Bharat service will determine the extent and timing of the connectivity improvements announced for Karnataka and southern India.
