A social media post has claimed that corruption escalated to the point where the expense of the forthcoming Varanasi ropeway has surpassed the budget for Japan’s Maglev train project, a high-speed rail initiative that is in progress.
As per the post, Japan's Maglev initiative intended to operate at speeds exceeding 310 miles per hour, has a cost of ₹616 crore (USD 70 million). In contrast, the Varanasi ropeway project of 3.75 kilometres reportedly has a cost of ₹800 crore.
What we found: We checked the budgets of the two projects separately and found the following.
Japan's Maglev Train: A report by B1M, an outlet dedicated to disseminating information about infrastructure and construction, noted details about the delay in the construction of this project.
It noted that in 2009, the project was approved and began construction for its opening in 2027.
It mentioned that the cost for the project would end up being more than $64BN which is ₹6,400 crore approximately.
Similarly, another article by Japan Rail Pass stated that the project's cost was estimated around $55 billion.
A 2014 article by Forbes also spoke about the Maglev trains in Japan and noted that its cost would be 'more than $50 billion.'
While the budget's details have not been revealed in definitive terms, it ranges between $50 and $65 billion.
The Quint has reached out to Japan's railway ministry for the details about the project and the story will be updated once the response is received.
Varanasi Ropeway: We ran a relevant keyword search and found a post by the Press Information Bureau's fact-check unit on X from 4 September.
It stated that the 3.75 km project came at a cost of ₹800 crore.
Reports by the Times of India and the Hindustan Times also noted that the project's cost was ₹807 crore.
In October 2024, Vishwa Samudra Engineering (VSE), a company based in Hyderabad responsible for constructing and maintaining the project obtained $40 million, equivalent to over Rs 322 crore, in funding from Switzerland's Xport Finance, reported the Economic Times.
In March 2023, when the project was announced Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari wrote on his X platform, "A glimpse of the 3.85 km long public transport ropeway being built in Varanasi at a cost of Rs 644 crore!" (sic.)
The Quint has reached out to the Road Transport and Highways ministry for more budgetary details about the project and the story will be updated once we receive a response.
The difference in the budgets of the two projects shows that the Japan Maglev train project is higher than that of Varanasi's ropeway project.
Conclusion: The viral claim that the under-construction ropeway in Varanasi, which covers a 3.85 km stretch, is higher than that of Japan's high-speed Maglev trains is misleading.
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