India's first bullet train project: All you need to know about Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe laid the foundation stone of the 508-km long Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) on September 14 in Ahmedabad.

Abe, who was accompanied by his wife Akie Abe, was presented a guard of honour at the airport, after which artistes performed the traditional Gujarati dance showcasing the state's rich cultural traditions.

The government wants to start the services this ambitious project on August 15, 2022 to mark India’s 75th year of Independence.

Here’s all you need to know about India's first bullet train project:

The bullet train is expected to cost Rs 1.10 lakh crore for the first rail link. Japan will fund 81 per cent of the entire project in soft loans at an interest rate of 0.1%, with repayment over 50 years.

The new train can carry 750 passengers between PM Modi's home state Gujarat and Mumbai, the financial capital. In a day, it will make 70 Ahmedabad-Mumbai sorties.

It is expected to run on an average speed of 250 km per hour, with a top speed of around 320 km per hour - more than double the maximum speed of the fastest train in India.

Read more: PM Modi faces criticism as he launches bullet train project

Of the 508-km stretch, 92 per cent of the route will be elevated, six per cent in tunnel and the rest two per cent will be on the ground.

The high speed train will also pass through the country's biggest tunnel of 21 km, of which seven km will be under the sea.

Over 460 km of the route will be on elevated track, 27 km inside the tunnel and the remaining 13 km on the ground.

The bullet train will connect Mumbai and Ahmedabad with a total of 12 stations.

The travel time will be reduced from eight hours to a little over three hours if it stops at all stations and around two hours if it stops at only four.

A greater stretch of this link, 351 km, will run through Gujarat and 156 km through Maharashtra.