With the Centre’s move to allow FDI in the railway sector, a number of French companies have started taking interest in the bullet train project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, which was introduced during the Railway Budget of 2014-15.

Some of the French firms which have evinced interest in the proposed high-speed rail project include SNCF, Alstom and Veolia.

SNCF, French mobility and logistics major, which evinced interest in the high speed train project, had earlier participated in the construction of the Delhi Metro and are involved in consultancy for the ongoing Mumbai and Bangalore metro projects.

After completing the renovation of the CST railway station in Mumbai, SNCF is now looking at investing in the renovation of other railway stations in the country, like Chandigarh, Ahmedabad and Amritsar.

Another company, Alstom Transport, has also evinced interest in the Indian Railways project and is looking to enhance its presence in the country by participating in more railway projects. At present, the company has a presence in infrastructure and services projects such as Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore metro railway projects.