Bullet train: Arvind Panagariya-led team in Tokyo to finalise project schedule

New Delhi - A high-level delegation led by NITI Ayog vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya will meet Japanese officials in Tokyo tomorrow to finalise key issues relating to the Rs 98,000 crore Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail project. [caption id=“attachment_2782462” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The Shinkansen, or bullet train, in Japan. Reuters file photo[/caption] This is the second meeting of the joint committee set up to execute the bullet train project, according to Railway Ministry. During the meeting, the committee will finalise the schedule of the project, terms related to the appointment of general consultant and procurement conditions, it said. Besides Panagariya, the Indian delegation will comprise A K Mital, Chairman Railway Board, Shaktikanta Das, Secretary Department of Economic Affairs, S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary, and Ramesh Abhishek, Secretary, Department of Industry Policy and Promotion. The Japanese side will be led by Hiroto Izumi, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister of Japan. Other members from Japanese side will comprise senior officials from Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and senior officials from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The flagship project is being financed by JICA, which is providing a soft loan of about Rs 79,380 crore, amounting to 81 per cent of the total project cost. Since the loan negotiation and finalisation of loan agreement will take some time, the government has requested for a proper schedule of project implementation to achieve timely completion, the railways said in a statement. India had also requested for appointment of general consultant, will enable start of preparatory activities like designing and preparation of tender documents, before the finalisation of loan agreement. .