Friction on the Tracks: Why an Ex-Japanese Minister is Blaming India for Bullet Train Delays

 


Friction on the Tracks: Why an Ex-Japanese Minister is Blaming India for Bullet Train Delays

Flagship international infrastructure projects are rarely smooth sailing, but a recent social media post has blown open a rare public diplomatic disagreement between India and Japan.

Hideki Makihara, Japan’s former Justice Minister and a member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, took to X to sharply criticize Indian negotiators over the timeline of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) project. Describing his personal experience working on the project, Makihara alleged "sheer recklessness" on the Indian side. 

"They just don't keep promises, no matter what. Even if they make a promise, they flip it right away... I feel 100% that the reason this hasn't moved forward is entirely on the Indian side." 
— Hideki Makihara, Former Japanese Minister

Makihara's outburst was triggered by a Japanese media report suggesting that India’s execution of the project is majorly diverging from Japan's core Shinkansen model—specifically claiming that India bypassed Japan on the vital signaling systems and is moving toward utilizing locally manufactured high-speed trains.

New Delhi Pushes Back

India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) wasted no time in issuing a firm rebuttal, dismissing Makihara’s comments as a personal grievance detached from reality.

MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that the remarks are "at considerable variance with facts" and emphasized that bilateral cooperation remains strong. To counter the narrative of stall and delay, New Delhi pointed to a few critical logistical realities:

  • The Train Delay is Technological: India noted that Japan’s E10 series trainsets—originally intended for the line—are still actively under development by Japan and will not be ready for delivery until the early 2030s.

  • The 2027 Interim Plan: Because ground construction in India has accelerated, both nations mutually agreed to launch the first phase (the Surat-Bilimora stretch in Gujarat) in August 2027 using an interim high-speed train configuration.

  • The Signaling Dispute: Responding to claims that Japan was "excluded" from the safety signaling ecosystem, the MEA clarified that the equipment ordered matches strict international specifications, adding that no viable Japanese commercial offer had actually been received for that specific component.

The Reality of the Gridlock

While Makihara's rhetoric is unusually blunt for Japanese political figures, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train has undeniably faced major headwinds since its foundation stone was laid in 2017. However, independent analysts point to systemic hurdles rather than "recklessness":

Primary Causes of DelayImpact on Timeline
Land AcquisitionYears of intense political pushback and slow land clearances, particularly across Maharashtra.
Pandemic DisruptionsCOVID-19 lockdowns froze physical construction and disrupted international supply chains for over a year.
Technical Re-routingEngineering complexities, including building India's first undersea rail tunnel near Mumbai.

The Takeaway

Despite the social media spat, the official lines of communication between Tokyo and New Delhi remain steady. Ground construction in Gujarat is moving at its fastest pace yet, and the project remains a cornerstone of India-Japan geopolitical alignment.

What this incident really highlights is the classic friction that occurs when high-tech, rigid foreign engineering standards collide with the ground-level bureaucratic and political realities of executing mega-scale infrastructure in India.

The Progress of the Project so far

According to data released by the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) and the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor has achieved roughly 59.1% overall physical progress.

Because land acquisition hurdles heavily delayed the Maharashtra section up until late 2021, the project is moving forward in distinct, staggered phases:

1. The Physical Construction Breakdown 

The structural spine of the corridor has largely taken shape across Gujarat, with heavy construction now picking up pace in Maharashtra.

  • Piers and Viaducts: Over 450 km of concrete pier work and roughly 354 km of elevated viaducts have been fully completed.

  • Track Work: 202 route km of reinforced concrete track bed is laid, alongside 83 route km of specialized track slabs.

  • Bridges and Tunnels: 17 major river bridges and 14 heavy steel bridges have been erected. Four mountain tunnels are done, and crews have broken ground on the massive 21 km sub-sea tunnel section near Mumbai, with 5 km of NATM tunnel excavation wrapped up.

  • Stations: Foundation work is completely finished for 8 of the 12 planned stations (all located in Gujarat). Excavation at the terminal Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) station hub in Mumbai is at 91% completion.

2. Operational Phasing and Deadlines

Rather than waiting for the entire 508 km track to be ready at once, the corridor is launching in stages:

  • August 15, 2027 (Trial & First Phase): The first public bullet train run will debut on a 100 km trial stretch between Surat and Vapi/Bilimora in Gujarat.

  • 2029 (Full Corridor Operational): The complete corridor—connecting all 12 stations across Maharashtra and Gujarat—is projected to be fully operational, reducing the travel time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad from over 6 hours to just under 2 hours.

3. Financial Outlay

The project was originally budgeted at a total estimated cost of around ₹1.08 lakh crore. To date, over ₹90,300 crore has been officially spent. While raw material and timeline delays are expected to push the final cost significantly higher, the Ministry of Railways plans to absorb the escalations internally.

Location: Satna, Madhya Pradesh, India

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