Discussed railways throughout hour-and-a-half bullet train journey with PM Modi: Ishiba

TOKYO — Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said that he and PM Narendra Modi discussed about railways throughout their hour-and-a-half journey together to Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture for a visit to the Tokyo Electron Miyagi Ltd (TEL Miyagi), a leading Japanese company in the semiconductor sector, on Saturday.

The two leaders were seen off at Tokyo Station by an Indian driver currently undergoing training at JR East, before traveling by Shinkansen to Sendai Station.

On board the Shinkansen, they engaged in a frank exchange of views, primarily on railways, including the future of high-speed rail in India, the history of Japan's Shinkansen, its accuracy and safety, and the role the Shinkansen has played to date, the Japanese PM's office detailed later.

Also read: Laid foundation of golden chapter in India-Japan partnership today: PM Modi

"I had the honour of riding the Shinkansen with Prime Minister Modi again today, having lunch together, and touring Tokyo Electron. While Prime Minister Modi has ridden the Tokaido Shinkansen before, this was his first time on the Tohoku Shinkansen. After all, even if you see and hear about it, you can't truly appreciate its comfort until you actually ride it, and I believe that by actually sitting in the driver's seat, he was able to experience its speed for himself. We talked about railways throughout the hour and a half we spent on the journey to Sendai," Ishiba told reporters later.

The two leaders also received an explanation about the test train 'ALFA-X', and during the journey, they toured the E5 Series Shinkansen driver's cab, experiencing its maximum speed (320 kilometres per hour) from the driver's seat.

"The adoption of Japan's Shinkansen technology and various Shinkansen technologies and rolling stock has been a thread that has continued from the Abe administration to the Suga and Kishida administrations, and now to us. I believe it was extremely meaningful for them to actually ride the train, and I believe they gained a deep understanding of how much effort we have put into ensuring accuracy and safety.

"The E10 series train has never existed before, so they were not able to ride it. However, they were able to see the test train, the 'ALFA-X', parked at Omiya Station. I believe it was significant that they were able to see the test vehicle, which we are considering introducing to India, and that this was indeed the case," the Japanese PM said.

The Japanese Shinkansen is currently running E5 trains. Next generation trains are E10. In the spirit of strategic partnership between Japan and India, the Japanese government has agreed to introduce E10 Shinkansen trains in the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train project. It is noteworthy that E10 will be introduced simultaneously in India and Japan.

"India is nine times larger than Japan, so what significance does building a Shinkansen or high-speed railway have there? How will it change India? How much will it cost to ride? And how will it contribute to economic development? Will it transport not only passengers but also cargo, or overnight sleeper cars? I seem to remember hearing somewhere that Modi, when he was still a Diet member, often took overnight trains to New Delhi. I had a similar experience, and there were many comments that resonated with me. After all, railways are a space of movement where everyone on board becomes friends, and in Modi's words, they are "like a festival." We shared this sentiment deeply," stated Ishiba on Saturday.