The mega infrastructures projects taken by the government for the development of the country changed people’s lives and making the economy even more dynamic.
People have already gotten benefits from the Padma Bridge and the metro rail.
Some more communication projects are expected to be ready by this year, making a model shift in the communications sector considered to be suitable for meeting the needs of the fast-growing economy that aspires to become a developed one by 2041.
Some big projects including 3.32km Karnaphuli Tunnel, 127 km Dohazari-Ghundum railway, Dhaka elevated expressway and BRT from Airport to Gazipur are scheduled to be completed by 2023, in addition to projects in the energy sector, including Rampal and Matarbari power plants.
After building Padma Bridge, construction of the tunnel under the river, the metro rail, Bangladesh has started the construction of the subway.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina officially inaugurated the construction work of the subway in Rupganj of Narayanganj, a district neighboring the capital on February 2.
Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) has got the responsibility of constructing this subway.
MAN Siddique, Managing Director of the DMTCL, said that this subway will run for 20 kilometers from Rupganj in Narayanganj to Kamalapur via Dhaka Airport.
“The estimated cost of construction of this project will be Tk 52,500 crore. Of this, about Tk 39,450 crore will come from JICA support. The construction of this subway is targeted to complete in 2026,” he mentioned.
However, the country’s metro rail will help save nine percent of annual gross domestic product (GDP) loss in Dhaka caused by traffic snarl.
Bangladesh Development Research Institute (BIDS) and Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) sources shared the information.
Due to traffic congestion, Dhaka loses about 2.5 percent or Tk 87,000 crore of the gross domestic product (GDP) annually, officials said.
This loss happens thanks mainly to the severe traffic congestion on the 128km road network in Dhaka city and, therefore, the government plans to build six metro lines with a length of 128 km by 2030, they said.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has formally inaugurated the country's first metro rail on December 28 last year.
The country’s first-ever metro rail carried 3.35 lakh passengers in the first 33 days, between December 29 and January 30, said officials of the Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited.
DMTCL managing director MAN Siddique said that by carrying these passengers the company earned Tk 2.46 crore on the Uttara-Agargaon route.
Initially, a 12km section, from Uttara to Agargaon, of the 21.26km MRT Line-6 has been opened.
The line up to Motijheel will be inaugurated a year from now.
The fare for a ride from Uttara to Agargaon is Tk 60 while the minimum fare will be Tk 20.
A fully-fledged service on this part of the line is expected from March 26 next year.
Once in full service, MRT Line-6 will carry around 4.83 lakh people every day between Uttara and Motijheel. The trip will take 38 minutes, which takes at least two hours on other modes of transport.
The MRT Line-6 project was given the go-ahead in 2012 with a June 2024 deadline and a cost of Tk 21,985 crore. But the authorities went for early commissioning of the Uttara- Agargaon section considering public convenience.
The project was revised this year to extend the line to Kamalapur from Motijheel, and to procure land for some stations. The project cost went up to Tk 33,472 crore and the new deadline was set at 2025. Japan is providing about 60 percent of the cost as soft loan.
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are financers of the metro rail project.
On the other hand, the Padma Multipurpose Bridge is a dream project for the millions of people in the southwestern region of Bangladesh.
The government has inaugurated the Padma Bridge in 25 June 2022 which is in a historic moment for the nation.
The Padma Bridge project has been implemented at a cost of Tk 30,193.39 crore with almost 100 percent internal funding which is believed to bring a new world to the country's economy by connecting 21 southwestern districts through roads and railways with the capital.
“The 6.15-kilometre-long bridge has made a paradigm shift to the lives and livelihoods of more than 3-crore people through creating trade opportunities domestically and internationally, especially in South Asia,” Md Jashim Uddin, President of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said.
“More than 27 percent of total population of Bangladesh living in the region will get direct benefit from the mega infrastructure in terms of trade and communication,” he added.
“Apart from bringing about significant changes to the existing economic activities, the mega infrastructure has reduced the distance between Dhaka and Mongla port by more than 100 to 170 kilometres,” he said, hoping that this will add 1.5 percent to the country’s overall Gross Domestic Product growth.
Md Jashim Uddin highlighted the importance of several development projects which are underway centring the Padma Bridge – Payra Thermal Power Station, Payra Seaport, Rampal Thermal Power Station, Dhaka-Bhanga Expressway, Dhaka-Khulna and Dhaka-Barisal two-lane highways upgraded to six-lane, Dhaka-Khulna, Dhaka-Barisal railway line etc. – all being the trademarks of development for the country’s infrastructure sector.
On the other hand, the first-ever tunnel of the country under the river Karnaphuli will open to traffic in next month.
Sources said, the construction work of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel has been completed, it will be opened soon for public.
They said, the total length of the tunnel will be around 9.092 kilometers including 3.40 kilometers under the Karnaphuli River with an approach road of 4.89 kilometers alongside 740 meters of bridges linking the main port city and western side of the Karnaphuli along with the heavy industry-prone eastern side of the river.
The multilane tunnel will directly connect Chittagong port and South Chattogram particularly the Anwara upazila. It will make communication between Chattogram and Cox's Bazar easier.
The tunnel will also ease traffic congestion on two bridges over the Karnaphuli River.
According to the sources, the total expenditure cost of the tunnel project was Tk 84.46 billion while China is providing Tk 55.05 billion. The rest of the amount is provided by the Bangladesh government.
Meanwhile, the BRT project from Airport to Gazipur would be opened for traffic by the middle of 2023, the project insiders said.
Officials said the 127km Dohazari-Cox's Bazar railway line will be inaugurated by June this year.
The Dhaka Elevated Expressway (DEE) project worth Tk 89.40 billion, being implemented by the government and a Thai company, is expected to be completed within 2023.
The Matarbari coal-based power plant and the PPP-based Rampal power plant are also expected to be commissioned within 2023, project insiders said.
State Minister for Planning Professor Shamsul Alam said that people are witnessing the new phase of development.
“The infrastructures will boost the economy at 8.5 percent by 2025 and at 9.0 percent by 2030,” he said, adding that Bangladesh is definitely heading towards an Upper Middle Income Country (UMIC) by 2041.