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 the Rs 98,000 crore Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail project.

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. PTI

Official release

The second meeting of high level Joint Committee on Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed rail project to be held tomorrow on 16.05.2016 in Tokyo, Japan

The second meeting of high level Joint Committee on Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed rail project will be held tomorrow on 16.05.2016 in Tokyo, Japan. The Indian delegation which is visiting Japan for this is being led by Dr. Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairman, NITI, Aayog. Other members include – Shri A.K. Mital, Chairman/Railway Board, Shri Shaktikanta Das/Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Shri Jaishankar/Foreign Secretary and Shri Ramesh Abhishek, Secretary/Department of Industry Policy and Promotion. The Japanese side will be led by Mr. Hiroto Izumi/Special Adviser to the Hon’ble Prime Minister of Japan. Other Members from Japanese side will include senior officials from Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport & Tourism (MLIT), Government of Japan and senior officials from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

During the meeting, the Joint Committee will finalize the schedule of project, terms related to the appointment of General Consultant and procurement conditions. Since the loan negotiation and finalization of loan agreement will take some time, Government of India to achieve timely implementation of project have requested for a proper schedule of project implementation and had also requested for appointment of General Consultant before the finalization of loan agreement. The appointment of General Consultant will enable start of preparatory activities like designing and preparation of tender documents.

Since Make in India and Transfer of Technology are key components of the project implementation, an industry interaction between Indian and Japanese companies will be held on 17th May, 2016. The event will be participated by almost 100 Japanese companies and 21 Indian companies. The industry interaction will enable Indian companies to explore business opportunities in participation with Japanese companies. Some of the Indian companies include : BHEL, BEML, IRCON, Reliance Metro, Tata Infrastructure, JBM, Patil Infrastructure, IL&FS, Hindustan Construction Company, Texmaco Rail among others. PIB