Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train: NHSRCL Completes Tunneling Work For Key Segment In Navi Mumbai

Navi Mumbai: National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL) achieved a significant milestone in the ambitious Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) project by completing the tunneling work for a 394-meter long Additionally Driven Intermediate Tunnel (ADIT). This crucial segment, part of the 508.17 km MAHSR Bullet Train project, was accomplished within a span of six months.

The ADIT tunnel, featuring a 42-meter deep inclined shaft, is located on the eastern side of the 20.377 km underground Package C-2, stretching from BKC to Shilphata. Its primary purpose is to facilitate access for construction workers and vehicles to a strategic point where excavation for the main-line’s tunnel will commence using the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM).

 The portal of the ADIT tunnel is situated at Ghansoli, Navi Mumbai, and from its extreme end, NATM tunneling will proceed in two directions: westward to Sawli’s Shaft-3, covering 1.6 kilometers, and eastward towards Shilphata’s tunnel portal, spanning approximately 1.8 kilometers.

In June 2023, India’s National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd. (NHSRCL) awarded Afcons Infrastructure the contract for Package C-2, valued at Rs. 6397.27 crore. The contract stipulates a completion deadline of 1888 days, or 5.17 years. As part of this package, Afcons will construct three shafts at key locations: BKC Station, Vikhroli, and Sawli. These shafts, with depths of 36 meters, 56 meters, and 39 meters respectively, will serve as launch and retrieval points for three Mega Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). Each TBM will have a diameter of approximately 13.1 meters and will bore through roughly 16 kilometers of tunnel.

A noteworthy video shared by Ashwini Vaishnaw on X showcases the progress of the project and can be viewed here. Additionally, Artful Dodger (@Rahul Chels) recently posted impressive images of the 56-meter deep Vikhroli Shaft-2 on X. Afcons plans to use this "infinity-shaped" shaft to launch two Herrenknecht tunnel boring machines (TBMs). One TBM will head towards Shaft-1 at the east end of BKC Station, while the other will progress towards Shaft-3 in Sawli, Navi Mumbai.