Overview
- NHSRCL installed a 60‑metre, 485‑tonne steel bridge in Ahmedabad in a seven‑hour side‑slew operation, marking the project’s first steel bridge in the district and the tenth across the corridor.
- The bridge was pre‑assembled 16.5 metres high on temporary trestles, used two 200‑ton jacks with locking trolleys, and incorporated about 20,360 high‑strength bolts with C5 protective coating and elastomeric bearings.
- At Bilimora station, rail and platform slab casting and structural steel erection are complete, with architectural finishing and MEP works underway alongside RC track‑bed completion and RLC‑assisted temporary track installation.
- The Railways ministry has set an August 2027 target for initial operations on the Surat–Bilimora stretch, though some reports cite December 2027, with services reaching Thane by 2028 and Mumbai by 2029.
- The 508‑km corridor spans Gujarat, Maharashtra and Dadra & Nagar Haveli with 12 stations and 28 planned steel bridges, and JICA is financing about 81% of the estimated Rs 1,08,000 crore cost.