State-owned heavy equipment manufacturer BEML Ltd. has been awarded a contract from the Integral Coach Factory for designing, manufacturing, and commissioning of two high-speed trainsets, the company said in a bourse filing. 

According to the statement, the price of each car amounts to Rs.27.86 crore and the total contract value is Rs.866.87 crore. 

"The price of each car is Rs 27.86 crore and the total contract value is Rs 866.87 crore which includes design cost, one-time development cost, non-recurring charges, one time cost towards Jigs, fixtures, tooling and testing facilities, which will be utilised for all future High-Speed projects in India," said the company in the statement. 

Reshaping Travel Experience

The company added that these trainsets will be the first indigenously designed and manufactured high-speed trains in India, and these sets will have a speed of 280 kilometers per hour. 

These trains will be fully air conditioned and will offer advanced passenger amentities including reclining and rotatable seats, special provisions for passengers with restricted mobility, as well as onboard infotainment systems. 

Delivery to Happen in 2026

These trainsets will be built in BEML's rail coach complex in Bengaluru, and the delivery is expected to happen in 2026. 

These trains will run between Ahmedabad and Mumbai, India's first bullet train network route. 

Initially, the government had planned to have Japanese E5 series Shinkansen high-speed trains for this route. However, due to high prices quoted by the Japanese companies, the government decided to manufacture these trains domestically.

Meanwhile, BEML is also manufacturing the first 10 Vande Bharat sleeper trainsets, the first of which has been already delivered to the ICF. These trainsets will undergo extensive testing before rolling out them to passenger use. 

According to reports, these Vande Bharat sleeper trains are expected to have more luxurious features than Rajdhani Express.