India’s ambitious high-speed rail project is gaining speed, with Japan agreeing to donate two of its legendary Shinkansen trains to India for trial runs and inspection. Japan would provide the train sets to make trail runs in the under-construction Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor.
E5, E3 Series Trains to Arrive in 2026 in India
The two train sets, one E5 series and the other E3 series, will be handed over to India in early 2026 after being equipped with inspection equipment, Tokyo-based English daily The Japan Times reported citing sources.
The Mumbai–Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor, when built, will be India’s first high-speed rail corridor with a maximum speed of 320 km/h. The high-speed railway system, or the bullet train, is being designed by the National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRC), a subsidiary of Indian Railways.
Trains to Undergo Environmental and Technical Trials
When the civil infrastructure job on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor gets over, these two train sets will be deployed to gather insights on driving behavior, such as the impact of heat and dust. The trial will also ensure the viability of future production in India of the E10 model of trains, which is Japan’s next-gen Shinkansen model. “Shinkansen” is used to denote the high-speed railway technology of Japan.
In 2016, PM Narendra Modi had inked an agreement with his previous Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe for producing Shinkansen trains in India, under the Centre’s ambitious “Make in India”. The pact will also facilitate the transfer of Japanese technology to India.
E10 Series Trains Planned for Launch in 2030s
For the about 500-kilometer high-speed corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, both governments have planned to launch the latest E10 series Shinkansen trains from Japan Railway in the early 2030s, but a report further added that the high-speed corridor would be put into operation on a phased basis.
India presently operates domestically made semi-high-speed trains, such as the RRTS and Vande Bharat trains which can touch speeds of 180 km/h, on its existing rail network. But technologies related to tracks and rolling stock have prevented Indian trains from reaching high speeds.
Japan Offers Trial Support Amid Delays and High Costs
India had initially intended to operate the E5 series Shinkansen trains on passenger service for the high-speed railway. Nevertheless, because of delays and high costs.
To break the deadlock, Japan offered to introduce the E10 series trains and provide the E5 and E3 series trains free of charge for testing. India has shown that it is willing to take the offer, as per the report.
Yen Loan Framework in Progress to Support Project
Japanese government low-interest yen loans are anticipated to fund around 80% of the total costs of the project, which was initially estimated at around 1.8 trillion.
As costs are now projected to rise, both governments are working to establish a new yen loan framework to facilitate the introduction of E10 trains. The framework is expected to be finalised during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming visit to Japan for a bilateral summit, noted the report.
