Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project Hits Major Milestone with Palghar Tunnel Breakthrough.

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project achieved its second tunnel breakthrough in a month in Palghar district, Maharashtra, on Tuesday, officials said. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw witnessed the event near Saphale village virtually from New Delhi via video link.

The newly completed MT-6 tunnel measures 454 metres in length and 14.4 metres in width, accommodating both up and down tracks of the high-speed rail corridor. This follows the completion of the MT-5 tunnel near Saphale on January 2, marking the second tunnel breakthrough in the district within a month.

The MT-6 tunnel was excavated from both ends using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM), a drill-and-controlled blasting technique suitable for complex geological conditions. Officials said the excavation was completed within 12 months.

The 508-km Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail corridor, India’s first bullet train project, is designed for trains operating at speeds of up to 320 kmph and passes through Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

Construction work in Palghar includes seven bullet train tunnels at various stages of completion. In Maharashtra, ongoing work also includes river bridges over the Vaitarna, Ulhas, and Jagani rivers, station buildings, highway crossings, and a 21-km underground tunnel between Bandra-Kurla Complex and Shilphata.

As of January 27, approximately 334 km of viaducts, 17 river bridges, and 12 major crossings over national highways, railways, and other infrastructure have been completed, while track laying and electrification work in the Gujarat section is progressing rapidly.