Is it possible to cover a five-hour journey in 30 minutes? May be YES! IIT Madras, with support from the Ministry of Railways, has developed a 422-metre-long India's first hyperloop test track. With the help of this, 350 km can be covered in just 30 minutes now. 

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It further means that once it becomes a reality, you can travel a distance of roughly 300 km from Delhi to Jaipur in less than half an hour. 

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw took to X, and wrote, "Government-academia collaboration is driving innovation in futuristic transportation."

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The project, known as Avishkar Hyperloop, was built at the IIT Madras campus. Union Minister Vaishnav said that the first pod of 422 metres will go a long way in developing technologies.

Also read: India Railways Minister Vaishnaw lauds ‘Bharat’s first hyperloop test track,’ watch video

"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," he added. 

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The railways plan to undertake the first commercial project soon. 

The minister further said, "We’ll decide on a site which can be used for good commercial transportation of, let’s say, some 4,050 kilometres."

Also read: Why is Elon Musk's 'hyperloop' still popular even after decade of setback?

Know about a hyperloop track

Hyperloop, referred to as the "fifth mode of transport", is a high-speed transportation system for long-distance travel. 

It further allows trains to travel at very high speeds via special capsules in 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," according to an official press release.

Also read: 500-metre-long hyperloop test facility to come up in India, IIT-Madras students' team secures funding

A Mach is around 761 miles per hour at sea level on a standard day.

Swiss professor Marcel Juffer came up with the first Hyperloop concept in the 1970s. 

These hyperloops' vision is to reach speeds that are comparable to or even higher than those of flights by significantly lowering air resistance and friction. 

"Hyperloop will be marked by its immunity to weather, collision-free commute, which can move at twice the speed of a plane, with low power consumption and energy storage for 24-hour operations," the release added.

Also read: Virgin Hyperloop completes first successful human passenger test

(With inputs from agencies)