Bullet train project: In a first, compensation break-up to be made public to farmers and land owners

“National High Speed Rail Corporation is formulating mechanism to make compensation matrix public for each land purchase,” said the official.

The official further added that railways will give 15 days to land owners to assess the compensation matrix.

National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation will soon start disclosing compensation mechanism from Palgarh district in Maharashtra.

“We have changed our strategy at Palgarh District to acquire land … we have asked 73 village Sarpanchs to give detailed plan, nod for land acquisition,” said NHSRCL spokesperson.

“Land owners have asked for street lights, ponds, doctors in return of land for bullet train project ... NHSRCL has financial bandwith to support villagers’ basic demands,” added the spokesperson.

The NHSRCL has estimated Rs 10,000 crore as land acquisition cost for the 508 km bullet train project under which the authority will compensate for loss of livelihood, loss of fields, etc.

One of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s key promises is estimated to cost Rs 1.1 lakh crore, 80 percent of which will be covered by a loan from Japan. The loan will be paid over a period of 50 years at an interest rate of 0.1 percent. The government has also claimed that the ticket prices will be lower than that of the air prices.

E Sreedharan, former managing director of Delhi metro, in an interview with Hindustan Times, said:

"Bullet trains will cater only to the elite community. It is highly expensive and beyond the reach of ordinary people. What India needs is a modern, clean, safe and fast rail system."

The construction of the high speed rail line is expected to begin this year between Mumbai and Ahmedabad and the bullet train is likely to come into action in 2022.

The first bullet train route will have a 21km tunnel with 7km of it being under the sea. The estimated performance by 2053 is 70 trips a day between the two cities.