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Exclusive: Is Modi's dream of aChina-like high-speed rail model worthit?Rahul Kanwal Beijing, May 13, 2015 | UPDATED 18:45 IST

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Exclusive: Is Modi's dream of a China-like high-speed rail model worth it? : World, News - Indi... http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/modi-china-visit-global-roundtable-super-fast-train-railways/1...

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China currently has a 16,000-km high-speed railway network across the country.

With Prime Minister Modi all set to land in Xian, the home town of Chinese

President Xi Jingping, all eyes are on the major outcomes from this visit. The

Railways is expected to be the most important driver of this visit. The two

countries are expected to sign a major memorandum on expanding cooperation

in the building of a high speed rail corridor between Delhi and Chennai. India

Today Group's Rahul Kanwal boarded a high speed train from Beijing to Xian to

assess the advantages and disadvantages of adopting China's high speed rail

model. This is an India Today Group exclusive.

For the People's Republic of China, building the world's largest super-fast rail

network has been closely linked to the country's booming global ambition. In the

early 1990s, the average passenger train in China ran at a speed of only 48

kilometres per hour. The roads were badly congested and the people were forced

to fly even for short journeys. It was in 1999 that China began building its first

high-speed rail corridor. Within 15 years, China has already built a national

network that is bigger than all the high-speed corridors of the world put together.

On the other hand, at the time of Independence, India's rail network was nearly

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Exclusive: Is PM Modi's dream of ahigh-speed rail model worth it?


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network. But since then, China has nearly quadrupled its rail network to about

1,10,000 km; India on the other hand has barely added 11,000 km of tracks in

the same period.

Ironically, back in the late 19th century, the Indian Railways was laying tracks in

different parts of Africa and even surveying potential rail routes to China through

Burma. But now the Chinese have left us far behind and the Indian railways has

been left with a lot of catching up to do.

When PM Modi announced his quest for a high-speed rail corridor linking

India's biggest cities, questions were asked about whether it was worth spending

the kind of money that is required to fund this expensive dream. Even in China, a

hot debate had raged over whether or not it was worth investing huge sums of

money on a project that could not be afforded by a majority of the people in the

country. According to conservative estimates, the total cost of funding China's

high speed rail corridor has been upwards of a whopping $300 billion in the past

decade and a half.

China's early high-speed trains were imported or built under technology transfer

agreements with foreign train makers such as Alstom, Siemens, Bombardier and

Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Chinese engineers then re-designed the internal

train components and built indigenous trains with the ability to reach

operational speeds of up to 380 kmph. The average speed on these trains at

present is 200 kmph.

China currently has a 16,000-km high-speed railway network across the country.

But that is not restricting the scale of the country's ambition. Chinese authorities

are now planning to build a 7,000 km-long high-speed railway line linking

Beijing to Moscow. This railway line will cost US $250 billion and will pass

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world's current longest high-speed line.

Ahead of Prime Minister Modi's visit to Beijing, the Chinese authorities have

been pushing for a pilot project to showcase the country's high-speed railway

prowess to the Indian people. China is currently conducting a feasibility study for

the $36 billion, 1,754-km Delhi-Chennai high-speed corridor. China wants to

speed up implementation of a shorter high-speed rail corridor from Chennai to

Bengaluru and from Delhi to Agra even as the feasibility study is underway.

Interestingly, PM Modi's declaration of India's intent to build a high speed rail

corridor has led to intense competition between Chinese and Japanese

companies. A study done by the World Bank says that Chinese projects are one

third cheaper than high speed projects by other countries. But the flip side to the

cost argument is national security. India needs to decide if it is prepared to

entrust an infrastructure sector with grave national security ramifications to

Chinese companies.

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has announced that the government is

seeking US $137 billion worth of investments in the Indian Railways over the

next 5 years. Japan and France are the other countries bidding for a share of

modernising India's rail system, which is the fourth largest in the world. Days

ahead of Modi's visit, the Chinese ambassador to India has announced that deals

worth US $10 billion are expected to be signed this week. A major part of this

investment is likely to go towards upgrading the Indian Railways.

For more news from India Today, follow us on Twitter @indiatoday and on Facebook atfacebook.com/IndiaToday

For news and videos in Hindi, go to AajTak.in. . .


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Posted by: franklyspeakingMay 13, 2015

Bluet trains are not economical viable option as of now or in next 20 years ... it willcompete with Airlines, not a replacement for Indian railways ... So it would be prudent forgovt of India to increase the speed and facility of current system from 50 km/hr to 120km/hr as its priority task.. since India has smaller area to cover even if we run our trains atthe avrg speed 120 km/hr it will be more than sufficient for next 2-4 daces .. aim for Bluettrains in 2025 onward if you think you really need it. only a small percentage of travelerwant to pay significantly high fare to save few hrs.. those can opt for airlines. . .. I amhopping govt will me more pragmatic than

Posted by: Dharmendra BhattMay 13, 2015

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Posted by: ThrinethranMay 13, 2015

The government should pursue a more relevant and realistic ambition of doubling thespeed and capacity, with improved speed and efficiency, of the country's long- distance railservices. Apart from enthusing people across the country, this would boost the economyboth in the short and long term.

Posted by: Patriotic IndianMay 13, 2015

Woh bhi kar hi rahe hain...bt does not mean we should not pursue other betteroptions/modes!!


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india china comparison in railways

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