<P> The project held its first full - fledged meeting at the Railway Ministry in the first week of April 2014, to bring about a broad consensus on the project, especially between the governments of Maharashtra and Gujarat . The meeting was attended by representatives from the Maharashtra and Gujarat governments, and the JICA, and Railway Board officials . At the meeting, officials agreed to begin the line from BKC, and then take it to Thane and onward to Virar . The Maharashtra government was in favour of connecting the line with Belapur as well, in order to bring high - speed rail to Navi Mumbai . However, railway officials were opposed to the Belapur detour . Officials also discussed the need to ensure that the terminal at BKC would be connected to Line 3 of the Mumbai Metro, enabling commuters from South Mumbai to reach BKC . </P> <P> In May 2014, the project was approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a meeting with the chairman of the High Speed Rail Corporation of India . The feasibility study on the project was carried out by RITES, Italferr and Systra in July 2015 . On 20 July 2015, a joint Japanese - Indian survey team recommended a Shinkansen - style system for the Mumbai - Ahmedabad line, including the adoption of Automatic train control and dedicated tracks . JICA's report recommended constructing 63.3% of the route an embankment slightly above the ground, 28.3% on stilts, 5.8% underground and 2.2% on bridges . Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain informed Parliament on 15 March 2017 that under a new plan the entire corridor would be elevated except for the tracks that were proposed to be built underground . </P> <P> An MoU was signed by the governments of India and Japan on 12 December 2015 . The Ministry of Railways, based on the recommendtion of the NITI Aayog, announced that Shinkansen technology would be adopted for the line, with technology transfer to support the Make in India programme . Japan would also provide staff training . In January 2016, the Ministry of Railways fast tracked the project and set up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) named the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited to build and operate the corridor . The company was registered in January 2016 in the name of Indian Railways . It was planned for the company to eventually be made into a joint venture with equity participation of the Maharashtra and Gujarat governments . The Public sector company is expected to build and also carry out train operations . The Ministry of Railways, the National High - Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRC) and JICA signed an tripartite consultancy agreement in December 2016 to implement the project . The NHSRC is a new agency floated to implement the project . A joint venture between Japan International Consultants for Transportation Co (JIC), Nippon Koei Co, and Oriental Consultants Global Co. Ltd. was appointed as the general consultants for the project, and prepared design documents, bidding documents and technical standards and specifications for the project . </P> <P> In late 2016, JICA awarded the detailed design study for the project to a consortium led by Japan International Consultants for Transportation (JIC), a subsidiary of East Japan Railway, West Japan Railway and the Tokyo Metro . The study formally began in March 2017 . JIC will forecast demand, set fares and devise a train operation plan, handle preliminary design work for structures such as tunnels and bridges, and draw up an overall construction schedule . Japan International Consultants for Transportation (JIC) Project Manager stated that "conditions surrounding the construction of a high - speed railway in India - such as weather, which is harsh there, and the quality and standards of materials - are considerably different from those in Japan . So we are now comparing and adjusting to these technical matters ." Japanese public and private sector companies conducted training programs for railway staff in India . JIC stated that the local expertise in India gained from constructing and operating various rapid transit systems could be utilized for the high speed rail project . Japan also provided training to Indian Railway Ministry officials, some of whom studied in government - sponsored programs at graduate schools in Japan . India and Japan signed an agreement to establish an HSR Training Institute in India by 2020 to train railway staff in high speed rail operations . </P>

Indian railways forms spv to execute mumbai-ahmedabad bullet train project