IIT Madras, in collaboration with the Ministry of Railways, has successfully developed India’s first hyperloop test track, stretching 422 meters. This groundbreaking achievement means that long distances, such as the 350 km from Delhi to Jaipur, can be covered in just 30 minutes.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw took to X (formerly Twitter) to share the news, emphasizing that “Government-academia collaboration is driving innovation in futuristic transportation.” The project, which was funded by the Ministry of Railways, is located at IIT Madras’ campus. Expressing his excitement, Mr. Vaishnaw mentioned, “The first pod of 422 meters will go a long way in developing technologies. I think the time has come when, after the first two grants of one million dollars each, the third grant of one million dollars will be given to IIT Madras for further developing the hyperloop project.”
Known as the ‘fifth mode of transport,’ Hyperloop is a high-speed transportation system designed for long-distance travel. It enables trains to move at remarkable speeds through special capsules housed within vacuum tubes. “It involves an electromagnetically levitating pod within a vacuum tube thus eliminating friction and air drag and potentially allowing the pod to reach speeds up to Mach 1.0,” said an official press release.
Mach 1.0 is roughly equivalent to 761 miles per hour at sea level on a standard day.
The release further stated that Hyperloop will offer significant benefits, including immunity to weather conditions, collision-free travel, speeds up to twice that of a plane, low power consumption, and energy storage for continuous 24-hour operation.
