Padma Bridge rail link project time extended by 1 year

The implementation period of the Padma Bridge Rail Link project has been extended by one more year without increasing the project cost.

The Planning Commission approved a proposal on Thursday (April 4) after it was sent by the Railway Ministry's Planning Division on Wednesday (April 3).

Planning Commission sources said the implementation period of the Padma Bridge rail link was from January 2016 to June 30 this year. Now, the period of this project has been extended by one more year till June 30, 2025.

Sources from the Bangladesh Railways said that the project has been implemented more than 90 percent. But still some works are pending. It will not be possible to implement the project within the deadline of May 4, 2024. Apart from this, considering the rate of expenditure in the past years, it can be seen that it will be possible to spend Tk 2,009 crore within 10 months ahead of scheduled deadline.

In this context, an official related to the project said that the remaining works will be completed by the extended deadline.

Project officials say trains are already operating daily on the 82km railway line from Dhaka to Bhanga via Mawa under the project since last October. Besides, from Bhanga to Jashore’s Rupdia via Narail, they have completed setting up the 82-kilometre main line.

By this June, the project officials will be able to complete the loop lines as well, but the signalling system and a number of station buildings will not be completed.

There will be a computer-based interlock signalling system at 20 stations that will take one more year to complete. Moreover, on the Dhaka-Bhanga section, works at Gandaria, Keraniganj, and Bhanga Junction stations are not completed yet.

The station building at Narail does not have much progress in construction as well.

Chinese contractor China Railway Engineering Group (CREC) is working on the project. China's Exim Bank is providing a loan of $266.79 crore to implement the project. The rest of the cost is being managed by the government of Bangladesh.

The Padma Bridge Rail Link project was approved in 2016 with an estimated cost of Tk 34,989 crore. In May 2018, the project cost increased to Tk 39,247, as the land acquisition cost tripled by two years.
Later, the project duration was extended to June 2022, but as the construction got hampered due to the Covid pandemic, the deadline was further extended to 2024.