Bhubaneswar to New Delhi in 8 hours! Odisha’s high-speed future and bullet train hopes

With the Union Budget unveiling plans for seven new high-speed rail corridors connecting major Indian cities, ideas are now emerging in eastern states about what such transformative infrastructure could mean beyond the flagged routes. 

While none of the officially announced high-speed rail corridors run through Odisha yet, planners and locals are quietly studying how high-speed rail might one day tie the state into the national network.

Economic and Connectivity Potential

Odisha’s rail network today stretches almost 3,000 km and is fully electrified, but large parts of the state still have limited rail connectivity, especially in interior and southern Odisha. 

If a high-speed train corridor were extended to the state, either as a spur from an existing planned route or as part of a future east-coast alignment, the impact could be profound.

Dramatic reduction in travel time: For example, travellers between Bhubaneswar and New Delhi could see journeys cut from nearly 30 hours on regular trains to within 8-9 hours on a high-speed train service.

Short hops like Bhubaneswar-Cuttack might take mere 15 minutes, and popular routes like Bhubaneswar-Puri could be traversed in about 20 minutes.

Coastal links to Visakhapatnam and Kolkata could become ultra-fast corridors, reshaping tourism, business travel and inter-state commerce across eastern India.

Also Read: Railway to airports, holistic development of southern Odisha demanded

Challenges for High-Speed Rail Corridors

However, experts caution that introducing high-speed trains in Odisha will require overcoming several hurdles like expensive dedicated high-speed rail tracks that require flat, straight alignments and differ significantly from the existing broad-gauge railway lines. 

Technical work such as detailed project reports (DPRs), land acquisition negotiations and funding arrangements would be essential first steps, similar to processes already underway for other corridors.

However, it is believed that the experience gained from building the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed corridor, where Japanese Shinkansen technology and large-scale financing arrangements are being applied, would pave the way for long-term expansion of bullet train networks to other regions over the next decade or two.

While Odisha is not among the first set of high-speed corridors earmarked by the Centre, the state hopes for a future where high-speed rail could help unlock new economic opportunities, reduce travel bottlenecks, and position the state as a key corridor connecting India’s eastern coastal belt.