Budget push for domestic TBMs may ease Bullet Train project delays: Experts

New Delhi, Feb 28 (PTI) Even as the import of tunnel boring machines (TBMs) from China for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project faces delays, the government's decision to strengthen domestic manufacturing of high-end construction equipment could provide a timely boost to India's high-speed rail ambitions.

In the Budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed a scheme for Enhancement of Construction and Infrastructure Equipment (CIE) to strengthen domestic manufacturing of "high-value and technologically-advanced" equipment.

"This can range from lifts in a multi-storey apartment, fire-fighting equipment, large and small, to tunnel boring equipment for building metros and high-altitude roads," remarked Sitharaman in the budget speech.

The move comes amid concerns over dependence on imported TBMs for mega infrastructure projects such as high-speed rail.

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) project – India's first bullet train corridor – requires some of the country's largest TBMs for the 21-km tunnel between Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and Shilphata, including a 7-km undersea stretch beneath Thane creek.

Railway officials said that the German-made TBM was supposed to be shipped to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Mumbai in September last year from China. They added that only one shipment arrived and the rest has been put on hold for a few more months due to technical reasons causing a delay in starting the excavation of the undersea tunnel.

In such a scenario, industry experts believe the proposed CIE scheme could gradually reduce such vulnerabilities.

"India currently relies heavily on imports for specialised TBMs and other advanced construction machinery," said an infrastructure analyst, adding that some of India's landmark rail and metro projects such as the under-river tunnel for Kolkata Metro and the biggest rail tunnel on the upcoming Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail project were constructed with the help of imported TBMs.

"A focused incentive scheme can catalyse domestic capability, reduce costs and cut project risks linked to global supply chains," he stated.

The Budget also announced plans to develop seven new high-speed rail corridors as "growth connectors".

These new corridors include Mumbai-Pune, Pune-Hyderabad, Hyderabad-Bengaluru, Hyderabad-Chennai, Chennai-Bengaluru, Delhi-Varanasi, and Varanasi-Siliguri via Patna.

Officials say these proposed routes could be planned as mixed, elevated (overground), and underground structures, depending on the terrain and urban density.

It also signals the Centre's intent to build on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad experience and create a broader high-speed rail network.

"If implemented effectively, the CIE scheme could help create an indigenous ecosystem for large-diameter TBMs, precision components, control systems and cutter heads – equipment critical not just for bullet trains but also for urban metros and strategic road tunnels," added the industry analyst.

Railway sources said that while the immediate delay in TBM deployment for the MAHSR tunnel is a cause for concern, the long-term solution lies in building domestic capability.

"High-speed rail involves complex tunnelling at significant depths and under challenging geological conditions. Developing in-house expertise and manufacturing capacity will be a game-changer," an official said.

With high-speed rail corridors proposed across western, southern and northern India, the government's twin strategy of expanding the network while promoting domestic manufacturing of key equipment could define the next phase of the country's infrastructure push, added the official. PTI JP HIG HIG