Bullet train in India: National Institute of Design (NID) in Ahmedabad students have designed the logo for the first-ever bullet train in India. The logo was selected for the ambitious project. (PIB image)

Bullet train in India: National Institute of Design (NID) in Ahmedabad students have designed the logo for the first-ever bullet train in India. The logo was selected for the ambitious project. A contest was held and the logo emerged as the top choice after it got nod from a three-member screening committee headed by renowned painter and architect Satish Gujral, according to Indian Express report. The logo has a cheetah on a locomotive engine signifying the lightning fast speed of the train.

“The contest received an overwhelming response from across the country. The dates for submitting the applications were between April 19 and May 18, and around 100 entries were received by the committee from various states,” a Railway official was quoted as saying by IE. “The cheetah represents speed, while the red and blue lines symbolise calm and reliability,” the report says.

The official said that apart from Gujral, the screening committee included a Niti Aayog member and an official from the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), which is in charge of the project. “Three entries were shortlisted after initial screening. The top entry was selected from NID, Ahmedabad, the second from the School of Planning and Architecture in Delhi, and the third from the NID in Bengaluru,” said the official.

The logo of Bullet train. Image-IE

On September 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe had launched the Rs 1.10 lakh crore project. The bullet train will run from Ahmedabad to Mumbai. PM Modi described the ambitious project, which is expected to be completed by 2022 and will cut travel time between the two cities from seven hours to less than three, as a “big gift from Japan to India”.

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The government is keen to make the Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed rail network operational on August 15, 2022, to mark India’s 75th year of Independence. The train is expected to cover a distance of over 500 km between the two cities in less than three hours, with a ticket to cost around 1.2 per cent more than the basic AC first class fare, according to IE report