POBNEWS24, Dhaka, Nov 13, 2021: The work of three important projects taken by the government for the development of communication and transport sector of the country is going to be completed next year. The Padma Bridge will be launched by next June. As a result, all the eight divisions of the country will come under direct road communication. Dhaka residents have already witnessed the experimental operation of the country’s first metro rail. The train will carry passengers by the end of next year. The country’s first underground tunnel under construction on the banks of the Karnafuli River is also expected to be opened by the end of next year. According to experts, the communication and transport sector will enter a new era if these infrastructures are discussed in the country.
The government has put 10 big projects on the fast track. Among these, the projects in the communication sector are: Padma Bridge, establishment of rail link on both sides of Padma and Metro Rail project. Although Karnafuli Tunnel is not on the priority list, it is considered as a big project. The policy makers of the government think that the Awami League will try to win the hearts of the people by introducing these before the next parliamentary elections.
Among these projects, work on Karnafuli Tunnel has progressed on time. The cost of the project has not increased yet. The other two projects are taking several times longer than scheduled. The cost of the Padma Bridge project has also increased three times. The government has invested heavily in the construction of roads and bridges in the south surrounding the Padma Bridge. If the bridge was opened on time, people would get the benefits in advance. Besides, metro rail project has been taken to free the people of Dhaka from traffic jam. But due to the delay in construction, the people of Dhaka have been suffering from traffic jam for seven years.
In the eighties, the trend of building large infrastructure in the country’s communications sector began. Investment in this sector has increased in the last one decade. In the 50 years of independence, ‘Iconic’ or commemorative infrastructures like Padma Bridge, Metrorail, Karnafuli Tunnel are on the verge of being launched.
The Padma Bridge is now on its way to completion
The Padma Bridge project is scheduled to be completed in June next year. Pichdhalai is now running for the movement of vehicles across the bridge. Then you have to do lighting work. Outside of this, the work of laying gas pipeline is in progress. As of October 31, the overall progress of the project is 7.75 percent. The work of the main bridge is 95 percent completed.
Feasibility study for the construction of the Padma Bridge was completed in 2005. The project was taken up in 2006. The expenditure was estimated at Tk 10,162 crore. But the work of the main bridge started in 2014 after seven years due to various complications. The four-year deadline was set. But timely implementation was not possible. So far the expenditure has stood at Tk 30,193 crore. The unpredictable shape of the Padma river, flood erosion and corona situation are blamed for the untimely work. After the last steel structure or span of the bridge was installed in December last year, the technically complex work was completed. Mawa of Munshiganj and Jajira of Shariatpur are added.
Talking about the complex process of work on the project, the officials said that three world records have been set around this bridge. Steel piles have been placed at a maximum depth of 122 meters under the pillars of Padma bridge. These piles have a radius of three meters. No bridge in the world has yet required such deep piling and no thick piles have been laid. The capacity of ‘Fractional Pendulum Bearings’ in this bridge is 10 thousand tons to protect from earthquakes. So far no such bearing has been installed on any bridge. The Padma Bridge is being built to withstand a magnitude 9 earthquake. A কোটি 1.1 billion contract has been signed with Chinese contractor Sinohydro Corporation for river management. Never before has there been such a big tender in river administration alone.
Padma Bridge Project Director. Shafiqul Islam said the project has had to overcome many challenges since its inception. Now there is no big challenge. Work is progressing since it will be launched in June.
According to the survey, the bridge will connect 19 districts in the south and south-west of the country, including Dhaka, with the rest of the country. If the bridge is launched, the country’s GDP growth rate will increase by 1.23 percent. The GDP of the south and south-west will increase by 2.3 percent.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) conducted a detailed survey in 2009 on the number of vehicles plying on the Padma Bridge each year. It shows that if the Padma Bridge is inaugurated at the beginning of 2022, then about 24,000 vehicles will pass through the bridge every day that year. In 2050, which will be about 6 thousand.
Officials of the bridge department say that if the Padma bridge is opened, a large part of the cargo vehicles will be from India. This route will transport goods from the west to the east of the country. The bridge will also connect Nepal and Bhutan. This will increase inter-trade.
Since the launch of the Padma Bridge, a number of projects have been implemented in the last one decade for its full utilization and socio-economic development of the South and South-West. Of this, a project worth Tk 39,000 crore is underway to lay a railway line from Dhaka to Jessore. Construction of 55 km long expressway at both ends of the bridge from Dhaka to Bhanga in Faridpur has been completed. The government has said that if the bridge is opened, it will take 1 hour to cross this road. Now it takes 2-3 hours to cross the Padma by ferry.
Underwater work, the first in the country
Karnafuli river has divided Chittagong city into two parts. In one part are cities and ports and in the other part are heavy industrial areas. Three bridges have already been built over the Karnafuli river. However, it is not enough to handle the pressure of vehicles. Apart from this, Cox’s Bazar is the longest beach in the world and tourism is increasing around it. Among them, Maheshkhali has a deep seaport and economic zone. Construction of deep seaport and coal based power plant is underway at Matarbari. All in all, there are plans to build Southeast Asia as a hub. There will be a bay terminal in Chittagong. Considering the work of these two banks of the river Karnafuli, a project was taken to build a tunnel at the bottom of the river, which will connect Chittagong city and Anwara upazila.
In 2014, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Bangladesh and China at the government level to implement the project. After completion of design and other work, construction of the tunnel started on 24 February 2019. The expenditure is 10 thousand 364 crore rupees. The country’s first tunnel under construction has been named after Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. With this, vehicles coming from different parts of the country including Dhaka to Cox’s Bazar and South Chittagong will no longer have to enter Chittagong city. The city will be able to reach the destination in the fastest time through the tunnel via the Outer Ring Road. This will reduce the traffic congestion in Chittagong city.
Work progress of Karnafuli tunnel is 84.33 percent. This tunnel will have separate access routes through two tubes. Work on a tube has already been completed. Work on the other is underway. According to the agreement, the project is coming to an end next December. The concerned officials think that the work can be completed within this time.
Dhaka residents have seen Metrorail by air
The overall progress of the country’s first metro rail construction project from Uttara to Motijheel in the capital is 72 percent. This project is being implemented in two phases. The government has announced to launch the Agargaon section from Uttara in December next year. The progress of physical work in this part is 69.61 percent. Six sets of trains (six coaches in one set) purchased for this route have come to Bangladesh from Japan. The test run of the train started last month and will last for six months. This will be followed by an integrated test run for three months. The final test run will be completed in the next five months. In other words, the train will be ready to carry passengers in December next year.
According to a survey conducted by BUET in 2016, the average speed of vehicles in the capital is 5 kilometers per hour. I.e. walking speed. Even 12 years ago this speed was 21 kilometers per hour. Passengers are getting stressed due to being stuck in traffic for hours. This stress is again working as a source of other diseases. Due to traffic jams, 5 million working hours are being lost daily in Dhaka alone, with a financial loss of around Tk. 36,000 crore annually.
In this situation, the Dhaka Strategic Transport Plan (STP) recommended the launch of three Metrorails in Dhaka by 2024 and six by 2030. The name of the road from Uttara to Motijheel is MRT Line-6. Whose work is ongoing. Construction of the remaining roads has not started.
Metrorail project is being implemented by Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited. MAN Siddique, managing director of the company, said the Metrorail will start operating from Uttara to Agargaon in December next year. Construction of three more metro rail lines is underway in Dhaka.
The length of MRT line-6 is 20.10 km. There are 16 stations. Metrorail project work on this route started in 2016. Metro Rail will take 36 minutes from Uttara to Motijheel. The cost of this project has been estimated at Tk 21,985 crore. Of this, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is providing Tk 16,594 crore. The rest is being borne by the government. At the beginning of the day 4 lakh 83 thousand passengers will be able to transport. In 2035, the number of passengers will increase to more than 16 lakh.
It will speed up the economy and create employment
Shamsul Haque, a professor in the civil engineering department at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), said the Padma bridge, metrorail and tunnel can be called iconic infrastructure, which is considered as a transformation. If these are introduced, it will add a different dimension to the dignity of the country. It will give freedom of communication, speed up the economy and create employment.
Regarding the Padma Bridge, Professor Shamsul Haque said that if the bridge is launched, it will be used by the neighboring countries besides Bangladesh. Bangladesh will be able to earn from this. The same applies to the Karnafuli tunnel. The government is connecting Cox’s Bazar by rail. Cox’s Bazar is being developed as an energy hub.
Regarding Metrorail, Professor Shamsul Haque said that Metrorail is the best medium for diversification in the public transport sector. This is a culture. The city may become impassable due to waterlogging, traffic jams, movement. But Metro will continue as a lifeline. He said a metro line might not meet the demand of the whole of Dhaka. However, once it is launched, people will get the benefits. Then the pressure to build more lines will come quickly from the people.
