The Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) on Tuesday cleared eight projects, including a Tk 3,263.63-crore one to construct Kewatkhali Bridge over the Brahmaputra River in Mymensingh.
The approval came from the weekly Ecnec meeting held with Ecnec Chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.
The PM joined the meeting virtually from her official residence Ganobhaban, while others from the NEC conference room of the Planning Commission.
“Today, the meeting approved eight projects with the overall estimated cost of Tk 5,441.63 crore (only additional cost of a revised project was counted here),” said Planning Minister MA Mannan while briefing reporters after the meeting.
Of the cost, Tk 3,332.72 will come from the public coffer while Tk 2,060.98 crore from foreign sources as loans and the rest Tk 47.93 crore from the own fund of an organisation concerned, he said.
The Kewatkhali steel arch bridge will be constructed by June, 2025 in order to establish improved road connectivity of Sherpur and Netrakona with the Mymensingh headquarters and the national capital.
The main project operations include construction of a 2093-meter bridge foundation and substructure, 320-meter steel arch bridge superstructure, 1773-meter concrete bridge and construction of culverts, construction of a toll plaza, and 33.02 hectares of land acquisition and rehabilitation.
Under the project, an overpass and 6.2-lm four-lane approach roads will be constructed alongside the main bridge.
The planning minister said there would be four-lane approach roads on both sides of the bridge to be constructed with the latest technology.
In reply to a question, Member (Physical Infrastructure Division) of the Planning Commission Mamun Al Rashid said that it would be the first steel arch bridge unlike other steel bridges in Bangladesh.
“There’ll be no pillar under the main structure of the bridge so that the river navigation is not hampered,” he said.
Out of the project cost, Tk 1,353.83 crore will come from government funds, while Tk 1,909.79 crore as project assistance from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
At the meeting, the Prime Minister directed the authorities concerned to construct an increased number of culverts in the flood-prone areas so that the usual water flow is not hindered, said MA Mannan.
She stressed the need for modernizing and improving the operation of the bio-gas plants.
Hasina put emphasis on the export of agricultural products maintaining the international standards of the goods, Mannan added.
Referring to the approval of a project designed to transform the plant quarantine laboratory to an international standard one at the central packing house with Tk 156.36 crore, State Minister Planning Dr Shamsul Alam said the export volume of agricultural products of Bangladesh is now hovering over US$ 1 billion.
So, the project has been undertaken to modernise the laboratory with the use of the latest technology and equipment in order to boost agricultural goods export.
The five other new projects are Capacity Enhancement of existing Grid Substation and Transmission Line with an estimated cost of Tk 774.86 crore; Development of Madarganj-Koira-Monsurnagar (Kazipur)-Abdullah Mor(Sarishabari)-Dhonbari Road with Tk 685.13 crore; Massive Technology-based Integrated Resource Management for Poverty Alleviation with Tk 209.17 crore; Climate Smart Agriculture and Water Management (DoF Part) (CSAWMP) involving Tk 106.25 crore; and River Protection of Dhepa, Punorbhoba and Tangon Rivers in Dinajpur District with Tk 180.05 crore.
Besides, Ecnec cleared the first revision of “Urban Resilience Project: Dhaka North City Corporation Part (DNCC Part) increasing the cost to Tk 812.23 crore from Tk 746.05 crore and extending the project deadline to April 2022 from June 2020.
Source: United News of Bangladesh