PM Approves North Bullet Train Corridor From Delhi to Varanasi, Patna and Siliguri With Guwahati Extension; Delhi to Agra in 59 Minutes, Says Vaishnaw

Pune, 1st November 2026: India’s bullet train plans are getting bigger. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced in Varanasi on Saturday, 31 October, that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved a north corridor for high-speed rail, running from Delhi through Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to Siliguri in West Bengal, with an extension to Guwahati in Assam. He made the announcement before flagging off Vande Bharat Sleeper services between Varanasi and New Delhi.

The proposed route

According to the minister, the corridor will link:

• Delhi
• Agra
• Kanpur
• Lucknow
• Ayodhya
• Varanasi
• Prayagraj
• Patna
• Siliguri, with an extension to Guwahati

Travel times promised

For comparison, the fastest regular trains today take around 8 hours between Delhi and Varanasi. Vaishnaw said the construction, from pillars to girders, will be “Make in India” and that the project will benefit young people, the middle class and small artisans along the route.

What has not been announced

The announcement did not include the corridor’s length, top speed, cost or a construction timeline. Land acquisition across densely populated Uttar Pradesh and Bihar is likely to be the biggest challenge, as it was for parts of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad line. Until a detailed project report and cost estimate are made public, these travel times should be seen as targets.

Where Maharashtra’s bullet train stands

The country’s first bullet train, the 508-km Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail corridor, runs through Maharashtra with stations at Bandra-Kurla Complex in Mumbai, Thane, Virar and Boisar. Vaishnaw has said the first section is targeted to begin operations on 15 August 2027, with the full line, including the underground Mumbai terminal at BKC, to follow in phases.

The trainsets are being developed partly in India. Public sector firm BEML has begun making coaches for an indigenous high-speed train at its Bengaluru facility, with a prototype expected in early 2027, according to reports. Pictures of the design have been widely shared under the “Bharat bullet train” hashtag on X this week.

And Pune?

A Mumbai-Pune-Hyderabad high-speed corridor has been studied in the past, but there has been no fresh approval or timeline for it. For now, Pune’s faster rail links are the Vande Bharat trains. Read our report on the new Bengaluru-Mumbai Vande Bharat Sleeper via Pune, and for the city’s own network, our Pune Metro guide.

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