Work on Padma Bridge to begin next year

Dhaka: Chief Adviser (CA) Fakhruddin Ahmed Monday said construction work on Padma Bridge will begin next year to establish a direct road link between the southwestern region and other parts of the country. He said this while formally opening to traffic the Sixth Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge (Mukterpur Bridge) constructed over the Dhaleshwari River at Muktarpur in Munshiganj. The bridge has brought the district closer to the capital establishing a direct road communication, a long-cherished demand of the people of Munshiganj.

The CA told the function that instruction has been given to the authorities concerned to immediately construct an alternative road from Muktarpur to Chashara of Narayanganj to make communication between Dhaka and Munshiganj smoother.

He said this region, including Dhaka, Munshiganj and Narayanganj, will have a coordinated transport system if the alternative road is constructed.

The CA said the present government is giving topmost priority to expansion and development of the country's communication system to achieve rapid economic progress.

The head of the caretaker government said, 'Padma Multipurpose Bridge Construction' project was approved in August last and a decision was taken to construct the bridge at Maowa to establish a direct road communications between the country's southwestern region and other parts of the country.”

He said works on formulation of a design of the project and the process for land acquisition are going on.

He gave directives to all organisations concerned to work in coordination to implement the project in due time, terming it a very important work in national life.

The CA said Padma river training work for the construction of the bridge will cover some parts of Munshiganj, reducing the intensity of flood due to erosion by the river as well as sufferings and miseries of the people of this region.

The 1.52-km-long sixth Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge (Muktarpur Bridge) was constructed at a cost of Tk 208.35 crore of which Tk 129.20 crore came from the Chinese government as grant and interest-free loan, while the rest, amounting to Tk 79.15 crore, was provided by the Bangladesh government.

The construction work on the bridge begun on July 2005 and completed on January 2008, six months ahead of the schedule. The10-metre wide bridge has two lanes.

The CA said opening of the bridge will give a momentum to socioeconomic activities of the district and help improve the standard of living and socioeconomic conditions of the people through generating employment.

'Vegetables, potatoes, fruits and various agri-produces can be easily supplied from Munshiganj to Dhaka, and the supply cost of various goods, which are sold here, will also come down,' he said, adding that it will also cast a positive impact on the market prices of agricultural items in the country.

Recalling China's immense contribution towards infrastructural development of Bangladesh and appreciating Chinese government for their financial and technical cooperation in constructing the Sixth Friendship Bridge, Fakhruddin said the new bridge will be considered as a milestone in the historical and friendly relations between the two countries.

Communications Adviser Maj Gen (retd) Golam Kader, Chinese Ambassador in Dhaka Zheng Qingdian, Communications Secretary Mahbubur Rahman and Executive Director of Bangladesh Bridge Authority Khan M Ibrahim Hossain also spoke at the function held near the south end of the new bridge.