Indian Railways partnered with JICA for Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project

Indian Railways, National High Speed Rail Corporation and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on 21 December 2016 signed a Memorandum for General Consultancy.

Under the tripartite consultancy agreement, JICA promotes smooth implementation of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Railway Project.

Highlights of the Memorandum for General Consultancy

• The general consultancy involves providing design and bidding assistance for the public works and systems required for the construction of the project.

• The JICA will bear the cost of general consultancy up to 2020.

• The memorandum is an outcome of the Japan-India Summit level talks in December 2015.

About Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Railway Project

• It is India’s first high speed railway line project.

• It is a 508 km line project linking Mumbai and Ahmedabad.

• Out of the total project cost of Rs 97636 crore, Japan offered an assistance of over Rs 79000 crore.

• The project is expected to be completed by 2023.

• Apart from the general consultancy, Japanese agencies will be involved in a wide range of other services like human resource training, technology transfer, etc.

About Japan International Cooperation Agency

• It is a governmental agency of Japan that coordinates the official overseas development assistance.

• It has 4 missions viz., addressing the global agenda, reducing poverty through equitable growth, improving governance and achieving human security.

• To achieve these missions the JICA follows 4 strategies viz., integrated assistance, seamless assistance, promoting development partnerships and enhancing research and knowledge-sharing.

• It is playing a key role in strengthening bilateral relations between India and Japan.

• In India, the JICA is actively involved in infrastructure development and poverty alleviation programmes.

• JICA is providing assistance to realize Japan-India cooperation such as the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) and the Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC).

• It is involved in strengthening Japan-India academic-industry networks and human resources development for industries such as manufacturing.

• JICA is extending its assistance to contribute to stronger relations between Japan and India.