Shares of railway stocks including RVNL, Railtel Corporation, Titagarh Rail and others jumped up to 4% on Monday after the Railway Ministry announced its bullet train plan worth around Rs 16 lakh crore to develop seven dedicated high-speed rail corridors across the country.
Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) shares jumped more than 4% to trade at Rs 243.40 apiece on NSE on Monday morning. Titagarh Rail Systems, Ircon International and Railtel Corporation of India shares, meanwhile, rose nearly 4% each. Texmaco Rail & Engineering, Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) and Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) shares gained around 3% each, while those of BEML and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) were up around 2% each.
All about the Railway Ministry's bullet train plan
The Railway Ministry unveiled its ambitious plan, which includes the Delhi–Varanasi and Varanasi–Siliguri bullet train corridors. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said these routes could reduce travel time between Delhi and Siliguri to nearly six hours, passing through major cities such as Lucknow, Varanasi and Patna. Currently, the fastest train on the route, the Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express, takes more than 20 hours to complete the journey.
The Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Delhi–Varanasi corridor is currently under review, while work on the DPR for the Varanasi–Siliguri stretch is expected to begin soon, according to a report by Times of India. Along with the under-construction Ahmedabad–Mumbai bullet train project, these corridors are expected to lay the foundation for a nationwide high-speed rail network connecting western, northern, southern and eastern India.
BEML is currently building the country's first domestically manufactured bullet train, designed to operate at speeds of up to 280 kmph. The train is expected to begin trial operations on a 100-km section between Surat and Bilimora on the Ahmedabad–Mumbai corridor in August 2027.
BEML Chairman and Managing Director Shantanu Roy said future versions of these trains could run even faster. According to him, speeds could eventually increase from 280 kmph to 350 kmph as technology advances.
Meanwhile, Vaishnaw earlier said the upcoming bullet train projects will rely heavily on Indian technology and locally manufactured components. Railway officials say efforts are underway to standardise construction methods, signalling systems and rolling stock production. This approach is expected to reduce costs, speed up execution and strengthen domestic manufacturing capabilities.
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