India’s first bullet train to run on August 15, 2027: Railway minister

India will get its first bullet train on August 15, 2027, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced, giving a major boost to the country’s ambitious high-speed rail project.

The minister said work on the bullet train project is progressing at full pace and the government has now set a clear timeline for the launch. The long-awaited Ahmedabad–Mumbai Bullet Train will be introduced in phases.

Phased operations

First phase: The bullet train will operate between Surat and Bilimora

Second phase: Services will be extended from Vapi to Surat

Third phase: Vapi to Ahmedabad will open, and after that, Thane to Ahmedabad will open, and then Mumbai to Ahmedabad.

Project progress so far (as of December 12, 2025)

Out of the total 508 km corridor, 330 km of viaducts and 408 km of piers have been completed

Construction completed on 17 river bridges, 5 PSC (pre-stressed concrete) bridges, and 11 steel bridges; the first 130-metre span of a 230-metre-long steel bridge has also been completed

More than 4.7 lakh noise barriers have been installed along 235 km of the route

560 track km (covering 130 route km) of RC track bed construction has been completed

Around 3,700 OHE masts have been installed, covering nearly 85 km of the mainline viaduct

Excavation work is ongoing on seven mountain tunnels in Palghar district

Of the 21-km tunnel between BKC and Shilphata in Maharashtra, 5 km of NATM tunnel has been completed

Construction of rolling stock depots is underway in Surat and Ahmedabad

Superstructure work at all Gujarat stations is in the final stage; work has begun on all three elevated stations, while base slab casting is underway at the underground Mumbai station

The Ahmedabad–Mumbai bullet train project, being developed with Japanese Shinkansen technology, is expected to significantly reduce travel time between Gujarat and Maharashtra once fully operational.