Budget 2026 proposes seven high-speed rail corridors linking growth cities

Budget 2026 outlines seven high-speed rail corridors linking cities such as Mumbai-Pune and Delhi-Varanasi, aiming to cut travel time, reduce carbon emissions and support balanced regional development

In a major push towards environmentally sustainable and faster passenger transport, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced plans to develop seven high-speed rail corridors linking cities that act as key growth connectors, as part of Budget 2026, tabled in Parliament.

Which high-speed rail corridors were announced in Budget 2026?

The seven high-speed rail corridors proposed under Budget 2026 are:

• Mumbai–Pune High-Speed Rail Corridor
• Pune–Hyderabad High-Speed Rail Corridor
• Hyderabad–Bengaluru High-Speed Rail Corridor
• Hyderabad–Chennai High-Speed Rail Corridor
• Chennai–Bengaluru High-Speed Rail Corridor
• Delhi–Varanasi High-Speed Rail Corridor
• Varanasi–Siliguri High-Speed Rail Corridor

Together, these routes are expected to connect India’s financial centres, technology hubs, manufacturing clusters and emerging urban regions through faster and more environmentally sustainable passenger transport.

 

“In order to promote environmentally sustainable passenger systems, we will develop seven high-speed rail corridors between cities as growth connectors,” Sitharaman said while presenting the Budget. The corridors, she added, are aimed at reducing travel time, cutting carbon emissions and supporting balanced regional development.

How the rail corridors fit into Budget 2026’s urban push

The announcement signals a broader infrastructure push under Budget 2026, with the government continuing its focus on cities with populations above five lakh, including tier-2 and tier-3 centres. Improved connectivity between such cities is expected to ease congestion in metros while unlocking new economic opportunities across regions. 

What is high-speed rail and when will India get its first bullet train?

High-speed rail refers to trains that travel significantly faster than conventional rail services, generally above 250 km per hour on dedicated tracks, with specially designed tracks, signalling systems and rolling stock to support those speeds. This category of rail transport cuts journey times between major cities and offers a cleaner alternative to short-haul flights by consuming less energy per passenger.

 

Globally, high-speed rail systems have been operational for decades in countries such as Japan, with its iconic Shinkansen bullet trains, France with the TGV, and across China, Europe and parts of East Asia.

 

India does not yet have an operational high-speed rail service in the strictest sense. The only line currently under construction is the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor, being built by the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited. Designed for speeds of up to 320 km per hour, it is expected to be the country’s first bullet train corridor, stretching roughly 508 km and scheduled for phased opening by 2027–28.

 

According to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, travel time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad will drop to about 1 hour 58 minutes once the corridor is operational. He has earlier said that the first operational run, expected in August 2027, will be limited to the 100-km Surat–Vapi stretch.