While dedicating to the nation two additional railway lines connecting the Thane and Diva suburbs in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) via video conferencing, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday did not miss the opportunity to remind the Maharashtra Chief Minister of the importance of the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train, a project which has taken the backseat under Maharashtra’s tripartite Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.
“Ahmedabad-Mumbai high speed rail is country’s need and it will strengthen Mumbai’s identity as the city of dreams. Completing this project rapidly is our priority,” Mr. Modi said.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the MVA government have been constantly questioning the feasibility of the multi-thousand crore project, and it has even been alleged that the State government is not cooperating with the Centre on the project.
Mr. Modi also used the opportunity to campaign for the upcoming civic polls in Mumbai and the MMR by counting his government’s initiatives to improve the rail network in and around Mumbai.
Recalling the contribution of the metropolitan city of Mumbai in the progress of Independent India, Mr. Modi said that now the effort was to increase manifold Mumbai’s capability in contributing to an “Aatmanirbhar Bharat”. “That’s why our special focus is on creating 21st century infrastructure for Mumbai,” he said.
Thousands of crores of rupees were being invested in equipping Mumbai’s suburban rail system with the latest technology, Mr. Modi said. He also said that efforts were on to add 400 km more to the suburban rail system, with 19 modernised stations to have facilities such as the CBTC (communications-based train control) signalling system.
The two additional railway lines connecting Thane and Diva have been built at an approximate cost of ₹620 crore, and include an 1.4 km-long rail flyover, three major bridges and 21 minor bridges. The lines will significantly remove interference in the smooth flow of Mumbai’s suburban train traffic from long-distance trains. They will also enable the introduction of 36 new suburban trains for the city.
