Page 49 - 15MAR2020E

transport

interest rate of 0.1 per cent. let train)is a visionary project which will The Make in India objective will also
The repayment period of the loan is 50 herald a new era of safety, speed and ensure that most of the amount invest-
years. Repayment of loan is to begin after service for the people and help Indian ed in this project would be spent and
15 years of receiving the loan, making it Railways become an international leader utilized within India. The construction
practically free since, this loan inter- in scale, speed and skill. sector in India will also get a big boost
est works out to roughly 7-8 crores per not only in terms of investment but also
month. In fact, generally, any such loan Make in India with respect to new technology and
even from World Bank or such other One of the prime objectives of the project work culture.
agencies costs about 5-7 per cent with is “Make in India”, which is to be realized Officials claim that this project is
a repayment period of 25-35 years, thus before commissioning of the project. likely to generate employment for about
India is getting loan for the High-Speed As per the agreement between Govern- 20,000 workers during the construction
Rail Project at almost zero cost without ments, the MAHSR Project has “Make phase, which will be trained specially
putting any strain on existing financial in India” & “Transfer of technology” to take up construction of such projects
resources available with the country, as objectives. Under the guidance of task in India. Some of the new areas where
more than 80 per cent of the project cost force (DIPP and Japan External Trade construction skills would be devel-
is being funded by Government of Japan. Organization (JETRO), action is being oped are ballast-less track, under sea
tunnel etc.
he estimated cost of the project is Also as per the feasibility study, the
1,08,000 crore. Approximately, 81 economic rate of return would be around
T per cent of the project cost would 11.8 per cent. So, economically the project
funded by loan from Government of Besides being a shows a good sign. Savings on account
Japan at a rate of interest of 0.1 per cent symbol of New India, of time, reduction in accidents and fuel —
with a repayment period of 50 years all add up. A lot of traffic from the roads
with 15 years grace period. The project is the Japanese bullet is expected to shift to high-speed trains.
targeted for commissioning by the year train that exemplifies As of now the project is economically
2022-23. This would coincide with India’s viable.The overall area gets developed.
diamond jubilee in 2022 to mark its 75 engineering efficiency In addition to the bullet train per se, tran-
years of Independence. sit oriented development will happen
The prestigious bullet train is touted and incredible along the route. A number of hubs will
to be a game-changer, besides being ‘a standards of safety and come up.
symbol of New India’. It offers a huge Virar area will get developed into
challenge and opportunity. A National punctuality is touted a major hub, because it will have con-
High Speed Rail Corporation Limited to be a game-changer in nectivity with Mumbai with hardly 27-
(NHRCL) has been incorporated as a 28 minutes distance. Boisar is another
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to imple- term of opportunities area that can come up as another major
ment the project. Since October 1964, commercial hub. The project also has an
when the first bullet train was launched, element of Make in India. The industry
it has emerged as iconic train of Japan. It will benefit because of that as number of
covers the 582 km between Tokyo and taken as per accepted concept paper joint ventures will take place.
the commercial hub of Osaka in two guidelines.
hours, 22 minutes. On the sidelines of this project, four Progress so far
The Japanese bullet train exemplifies sub-groups with representatives from A dedicated High Speed Rail Training
engineering efficiency and incredible Indian industry, Japanese industry, DIPP, Institute is being developed at Vadodara
standards of safety and punctuality as NHSRCL & JETRO have been formed to and this institute will be fully equipped
these have carried ten billion passengers identify potential items and sub-systems with equipment and facilities such as
sans a single accident or casualty with an for make in India. Active interactions are simulator as are existing in the train-
average enviable delay of less than one already taking place between the indus- ing institute at Japan. This institute will
minute. Considering the time it takes to tries of India and Japan. It is expected that be functional by the end of 2020.The
reach the airport and then take a flight many joint ventures will be formed in the facilities at this institute will be utilized
and reach the destination, the bullet train time to come to take up manufacturing to train about 4,000 staff in next three
would take half the time to reach their of various components including roll- years, which will then be utilized for
destinations. ing stock. This will not only benefit the operation and maintenance ensuring
This Mumbai — Ahmedabad High Indian industry with new technology but that this work is through skilled people in
Speed Rail (MAHSR) project (popularly will also create several job opportunities India rather than foreign dependent.
known as the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bul- within the country. They will also serve as a backbone for

49