The contracts cover all civil works and trackwork on the 626km section of the route, including 1388km of track, 112 major bridges and 1118 minor bridges. All works must be completed within 48 months.

The signing took place at a ceremony in Delhi on August 19 in the presence of Mr Takeshi Yagi, Japan's ambassador to India, Mr R K Gupta, managing director of DFCCIL, Mr Toshihiko Kita, managing executive officer of Sojitz ,and Mr S N Subrahmanyan, senior executive vice president of Larsen & Toubro.

The 1483km Western DFC will link Dadri near Delhi with Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai, running through the states of Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra. The line is expected to open in 2017.