ECNEC okays Tk 1,435.89 crore for Tangail-Delduar Highway upgradation

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Tuesday approved a Taka 1,435.89 crore project to upgrade the Tangail-Delduar-Louhati-Saturia-Kawalipara-Kalampur bus stand road regional highway to due standard and width to ensure safe and uninterrupted road communication system.
The approval came in the 5th ECNEC meeting of the current fiscal year (FY22), presided over virtually by ECNEC Chairperson Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from her Ganabhaban official residence while Ministers, State Ministers, Planning Commission members and secretaries concerned attended it at the NEC Conference Room at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the city.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Planning Minister MA Mannan said a total of nine projects were approved involving an overall estimated cost of Taka 6,551.27 crore.
"Of the total project cost, Taka 3,742.29 crore will come from the government of Bangladesh portion, Taka 26.22 crore from the concerned organization's own fund while the rest of Taka 2,782.76 crore as project assistance," he said.
Among the approved nine projects, four are new while five others are revised ones.
BSS adds: The planning minister said that the Roads and Highways Department under the Road Transport and Highways Division will implement the road upgradation project in Tangail by December, 2023.
Once the project is completed, safe and uninterrupted road communicationwill be established in Tangail, Delduar, Nagarpur, Dhamrai and Saturia upazilas with Manikganj and Dhaka in much lesser time.
The main project operations include 73.44 hectares of land acquisition, construction of five PC girder bridges, widening and strengthening of pavements, construction of one grade separated intersection and one U-loop or underpass, construction of 31 RCC box culverts, 13.26 lakh cubic meter road embankment widening, and construction of drains.
The Planning Minister said the ECNEC meeting was informed that the work of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman tunnel under River Karnaphuli is likely to  be completed much before the stipulated timeframe of December 2022.
He said that out of the two channels of the tunnel, the work of one has already been completed while the other one is likely to be accomplished soon, most likely on Friday.
Referring to the approval of much talked about 2nd revision of Kushtia  Medical College and Hospital with an additional cost of Taka 71.38 crore, Mannan said following allegations of alleged irregularities into the work of the Medical College, IMED launched an investigation and finally submitted its  report.
The other projects approved in the meeting are Sayedabad water supply  project, phase-3, 1st revised with an additional cost of Taka 2,920.66 crore.
Agriculture weather information system development, 1st revised with an  additional cost of Taka 93.18 crore, Establishment of two agricultural  training institutes at Jagannathpur and Mohonganj upazilas with Taka 356.08  crore, River bank protection, re-excavation of small rivers, canals, beels, addressing water logging at Pirganj upazila in Rangpur with Taka 165.59  crore, River bank protection on the both sides of Kirtinasha River at  Shariutpur with Taka 319.33 crore, Boropukuria-Bogura-Kaliakoir 400kv line,  1st revised with an additional cost of Taka 729.89 crore and Erection of  railway track from Khulna to Mongla Port, 2nd revised with an additional cost of Taka 459.27 crore.