To utilize the Bangabandhu Tunnel, being constructed under the Karnaphuli River in Chattogram to the fullest, an attractive economic zone and the expansion of Chattogram city in Anwara on the opposite side of the river is underway.
Completion of the project is set for within December 2022.
China Communication and Construction Company has been constructing the 9.3km tunnel, about 3.4km of which would be under the river. China Harbor, another Chinese venture, is also involved in building in the economic zone.
Along with the construction of the tunnel, the work of setting up the economic zone is also progressing at an equal pace. Besides, several authorities are also conducting various surveys to build new cities there. The city will get a new look as ‘One City, Two Town” on both sides of the river around the tunnel.
Preparing a new master plan for Chattogram city will be started soon centring the two banks of Karnaphuli River.
Tunnel construction progress is already 56 percent. Authorities say they are trying to complete the construction within the stipulated time of December 2022.
In the economic zone on 760 acres of land, 60 Chinese companies have offered to invest around one billion USD.
The Bangabandhu Tunnel is under construction at a cost of around Tk 10,000 crore with the financial support of China, and is the longest underpass at the bottom of the river in Asia.
A 3.4 km length of the tunnel is located at the mouth of the Karnaphuli River, and built next to the Chattogram Shah Amanat International Airport, connecting Anwara Upazila, the area also is an industrial hub on the other side of the river.
The government has planned to construct a marine drive from Chattogram to Cox's Bazar with the support of the Bangabandhu Tunnel. “This will be constructed from Mirsarai to Cox's Bazar and will be very beneficial,” an official said.
Harun Ur Rashid, Project director of the Bangabandhu Tunnel, said, after the completion of boring and ring installation of a tube, the overall progress of tunnel construction is 56 percent. Although the pace of work has slowed down due to the coronavirus, efforts are still being made to complete it within the stipulated time.
Meanwhile, with the dream project Bangabandhu Tunnel, the road communication system in South Chattogram is also improving. The Dhaka-Chittagong-Cox's Bazar road network is being diverted to an 11 km long six lane tunnel connecting road. The Roads and Highways Department has taken up a project worth Tk 400 crore. And after its implementation, the distance from Dhaka to Cox's Bazar will be reduced 50 km. The distance between Cox's Bazar and Chattogram will be reduced 15 kilometers.
Next to this connecting road, a large economic zone is being built on 760 acres of land with Chinese funding.
China Harbor Engineering Company has set a target of investing Tk 16,000 crore in the Chinese economic zone on a Government to Goverment basis. More than 100,000 people will have employment opportunities.
According to Bangladesh Export Zone Authority BEZA sources, there are prospects with the country's emerging and export-oriented shipbuilding industry, electronics goods, furnace and cement industries given the highest priority. 361 industries will be set up in the economic zone in Anowara.
Chattogram Development Authority, CDA, has been looking for land to build a large-scale housing project there, said Zahirul Alam Dobhas, Chairman of CDA, “ most of the land in Anwara area has been utilized for the expansion of industrial factories and roads. We are looking for a place to take on a new project, but are not getting it.”
A new master plan is being prepared for the city of Chattogram, so that a new city can be built on both banks of the river, taking advantage of the recent development projects, including tunnels, Dobhas added.