Indian Railways is moving ahead with plans to develop 7 new high-speed rail corridors across the country with an estimated investment of ₹16 trillion as the government pushes for faster intercity mobility and large-scale infrastructure expansion.
As per news reports, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister for Railways, said the proposed corridors are expected to significantly reduce travel time between major cities while helping connected regions evolve into integrated economic zones.
According to Vaishnaw, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor will reduce travel duration between the 2 cities to 1 hour and 57 minutes.
He added that travel time between Mumbai and Pune is expected to decline to 48 minutes, while Pune to Hyderabad could be covered in 1 hour and 55 minutes under the upcoming network expansion plans.
The minister stated that the ₹16 trillion investment programme is expected to largely benefit Indian construction companies and domestic manufacturing firms because the project designs and construction systems have now been standardised locally.
Vaishnaw said Indian Railways’ annual capital expenditure has increased substantially in recent years, rising from nearly ₹66,000 crore earlier to around ₹272,000 crore during the last financial year.
The railway network has also accelerated electrification work, with around 49,000 kilometres of tracks now electrified across the country. The minister noted that this is equivalent to the entire railway network of Germany.
In addition, Indian Railways has increased production of wagons and locomotives to support rising freight and passenger transportation requirements.
The rail minister also announced completion of the Dedicated Freight Corridor project on April 5 despite multiple execution challenges.
According to him, the freight corridor is currently handling nearly 480 trains daily and has sharply reduced cargo transit time between hinterland regions and ports from nearly 48 hours to around 12-16 hours.
Vaishnaw added that Indian Railways has addressed earlier shortages of coal transportation wagons, while coal inventory levels at power plants have now increased to 54 million tonnes.
The minister said Indian Railways is also strengthening its manufacturing and export capabilities.
According to Vaishnaw, India is now exporting railway propulsion systems, which are among the core technologies supporting train operations, to developed countries including the United States, Germany and France.
He also urged industries to reduce foreign exchange outflows and increase export-oriented activities amid global geopolitical uncertainty.
Indian Railways is rapidly scaling high-speed connectivity, freight infrastructure and manufacturing capabilities as the government positions the sector as a major driver of economic integration, logistics efficiency and industrial growth in India.
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Published on: May 12, 2026, 10:29 AM IST
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