Prime Minister Modi Embarks on Bullet Train Journey in Japan, Strengthening India-Japan Rail Ties
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took an important bullet train ride on the second day of his visit to Japan, accompanied by his Japanese counterpart Shigeru Ishiba. This ride, aboard the famed Japanese bullet train, took them to the city of Sendai, marking a symbolic moment of the deepening collaboration between the two nations in modern rail technology.
The journey was not just a scenic ride but also an opportunity to witness the advanced ALFA-X train. Modi and Ishiba were briefed by the chairman of East Japan Railway Company (JR East), the operator of the bullet trains, highlighting Japan's cutting-edge rail innovations that India aims to learn from and implement.
A particularly notable part of Modi's visit was meeting the Indian train drivers currently undergoing training in Japan with JR East. These drivers, poised to bring back valuable expertise to India’s rapid transit projects, were personally greeted and interacted with by the Prime Minister, symbolizing the human connection behind the bilateral tech exchange.
Earlier on the day, Modi also met with governors of sixteen Japanese prefectures in Tokyo, emphasizing the potential of state-prefecture collaboration under the recently launched State-Prefecture Partnership Initiative. This initiative aims at fostering shared progress through cooperation in trade, innovation, entrepreneurship, and emerging sectors such as startups, technology, and artificial intelligence.
The visit underscores the growing strategic relationship between India and Japan, particularly in futuristic transport infrastructure. It also highlights India's readiness to adopt best practices from Japan’s rail mastery, a move expected to bolster connectivity and economic growth back home.
Such engagements and knowledge exchanges between India and Japan are paving the way for a robust partnership in transport and technology, signaling a milestone in Indo-Japanese friendship and shared progress toward modernization.
This remarkable visit not only celebrates bullet train technology but also signifies the collaborative spirit driving India’s journey toward transforming its rail infrastructure with state-of-the-art global expertise.
