The tender for constructing a 21-km tunnel, including a 7-km undersea stretch, of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail corridor (bullet train) will open Thursday (February 9). This will be the first undersea tunnel in India.
The tunnel will be built at Thane creek, between underground stations at Bandra-Kurla Complex and Shilphata in Maharashtra.
It is crucial to the bullet train project and is seen as the most challenging piece of civil engineering in the high-speed rail corridor. It may take around 60 months to construct.
The bullet train project is a 508-km corridor between Ahmedabad and Mumbai, crossing Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Executed with technical and financial assistance from Japan, the project costs around Rs 1.1 lakh, as per 2015 prices.
The tender was fraught with controversy in the past. The Indian Express has learnt that the tender did not find Japanese participation and could not be finalised in the first attempt in 2019-2020. There were concerns about the cost that had emerged from discussions with Japanese firms then.
Later on, the non-availability of land in Maharashtra was one reason why the tender was cancelled in 2021. The tender was finally floated in September 2022, and it is open to Indian as well as Japanese players. Indian players may also tie up with international companies and vie for the contract, officials said.
It will be a single-tube tunnel to accommodate twin tracks. The section will include constructing 39 equipment rooms at 37 locations adjoining the tunnel.
The tender was fraught with controversy in the past. The Indian Express has learnt that the tender did not find Japanese participation and could not be finalised in the first attempt in 2019-2020. There were concerns about the cost that had emerged from discussions with Japanese firms then.
Later on, the non-availability of land in Maharashtra was one reason why the tender was cancelled in 2021. The tender was finally floated in September 2022, and it is open to Indian as well as Japanese players. Indian players may also tie up with international companies and vie for the contract, officials said.
It will be a single-tube tunnel to accommodate twin tracks. The section will include constructing 39 equipment rooms at 37 locations adjoining the tunnel.
This tunnel will be about 25-65 metres deep from the ground level, and the deepest construction point will be 114 metres below Parsik hill near Shilphata.