Bullet train project delayed by 50 years until Modi came: Goyal
New Delhi, July 25 : Claiming that Railways was used for "political reasons" earlier, Railways Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday slammed the previous governments for not being able to bring the Bullet Train.
"Earlier, Railways was used for political reasons. So many schemes were announced, but there was scarcity of budget to work on all the schemes. We ensured that wherever the land is available and the work is important, it is being done on a priority basis.
"Our plan is to have separate toilets for men and women, water facilities, upgraded waiting rooms and other facilities in every station in the country," he told the Lok Sabha in response to a question.
"The Prime Minister has a vision to make India a technology power so that people get world-class facilities. The bullet train technology has arrived in India after a delay of 50 years because Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come now."
"We got a loan of Rs 1.08 lakh crore for 50 years at an interest of 0.1 per cent from Japan. We want to develop a network of speed rail in the country.
"The government also ensured transfer of technology, so that it helps in 'Make in India' and contributes in improving the economy," he added.
Hitting out at the Congress, Goyal said: "They should be happy that the bullet train project which they could not implement, this government is doing it. The money which they couldn't bring, we got it at a minimal interest."
"The pace at which the work of track maintenance is being done now in one year, that was never possible in three years of UPA government. During 2012-13, only 800 kms of electrification was done, while we electrified 4,100 kms last year. We also laid 4,500 kms of new tracks in a year," he said to a question by Congress' Mallikarjun Kharge on bullet trains, doubling of tracks, electrification and laying of new tracks.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
