Indian Railways to launch 1,000 new trains, Bullet by 2027: Ashwini Vaishnaw

Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has unveiled an ambitious, future-forward vision set to redefine the contours of Indian Railways focusing on infrastructure modernization, sustainable freight logistics, passenger convenience, and global competitiveness.

At the heart of the transformation is the planned introduction of 1,000 new trains over the next five years, alongside the much-anticipated Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train, India’s first high-speed rail project, which is scheduled to commence operations by 2027.

The project, developed in collaboration with Japan, is progressing steadily. The first prototype of the bullet train is expected to arrive by 2026, with full-fledged services to follow a year later. The project integrates international expertise with domestic innovation, drawing technical input from prestigious institutions like IIT Madras and IIT Roorkee.

One of the key structural achievements includes the completion of the Daman Ganga River Bridge in Gujarat’s Valsad district—the 16th of 21 river bridges in the state, with all five structures in Valsad now finalized. These milestones bring the bullet train network significantly closer to reality.

Minister Vaishnaw emphasized that Indian Railways is currently undergoing one of the most extensive overhauls in its 170-year history. Over the past 11 years, the network has expanded by 35,000 kilometers—a rate surpassing that of several developed nations and making India’s rail grid comparable in scale to Germany’s.

In the past year alone, the Railways laid a record 5,300 km of new track, while simultaneously achieving unmatched manufacturing outputs—30,000 wagons and 1,500 locomotives annually, a figure higher than the combined production capacities of North America and Europe.

Financially, the transformation is being backed by an exponential surge in investment. The Railways' annual budget has jumped from ₹25,000 crore to ₹2.52 lakh crore, with an additional ₹20,000 crore mobilized through public-private partnerships (PPPs).

While passenger services continue to be upgraded, an equally strong focus is being placed on freight logistics, a segment seen as a critical pillar of economic growth. According to Vaishnaw, transporting goods by rail is over 50% cheaper per tonne-kilometre than road transport, and 95% more eco-friendly, aligning the Railways with India’s climate commitments.

The roadmap also includes urban rail expansion, de-carbonization, and alignment with global benchmarks in sustainable mobility, reinforcing Indian Railways as not only a national backbone of transport but also a global model for green infrastructure.