Modi, accompanied by his Japanese counterpart Shigeru Ishiba, travelled in a bullet train to Sendai, situated at a distance of over 300 km from Tokyo.
The special shinkansen or bullet train will run for the next three months between the western cities of Osaka and Fukuoka from Saturday, the West Japan Railway firm said, hoping that one of the country's most famous exports will boost tourism. Passengers will be in left in no doubt what train they are on, with Hello Kitty smiling down from the shades of every window and adorning every passenger seat cover. Here's a glimpse of what it will be like on board the train and we have to warn you, it's almost too cute to handle.
With a 'tilak' on his forehead and a 'puja thali' in his hands, Shinzo Abe's picture attending the 'Ganga aarti' alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the fabled Dashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi in 2015 symbolised his 'India connect' and reflected the very special bond he shared with the country.
'Once finished, the project will reduce the travel time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad to just over two hours.'
The cost of railway linking Mumbai and Ahmedabad is between $12.2 bn to $13.9 bn.
Nagoya Station in Japan has the world's tallest railway station building.
Linking India's growth to high-speed trains, chief of a Japanese rail company said quicker movement will help the country in realising its ambition of pushing development and progress.
The train, operated by the West Japan Railway Company, was carrying was carrying 580 passengers, mainly commuters and schoolchildren.
'Both India and Japan can find themselves in a win-win situation if they draw some lessons from each other's strengths,' says Dr Rajaram Panda.
The annual summit between India and Japan on Saturday will seek to forge greater bilateral trade and investment ties, with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe coming with a high-powered business delegation.
The high-speed train line in a region already well-connected by rail, road and airways may have to struggle to stay viable
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