Railway services to be expanded in 10 districts: Railway Minister

Railway Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam has said that rail services will be expanded in 10 districts surrounding Dhaka and in the southern part of the country. He said this in response to questions from journalists at the Secretariat on Tuesday afternoon.

According to sources in the Railway Ministry, Sherpur, Meherpur, Magura, Satkhira, Barisal, Barguna, Patuakhali, Jhalokati, Pirojpur and Lakshmipur districts will come under rail connectivity.

The Railway Minister said that a meeting was held on Tuesday under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister to review the latest activities of the Railway Ministry, the status of services and the steps taken for the transition. Some important decisions were taken in the meeting to improve the quality of services. The Akhaura-Sylhet, Sirajganj-Bogura railway lines and the Container Depot project at Dhirashram have already been approved.

The minister said that to upgrade the Dhaka-Chattogram railway to broad gauge, a dual-gauge double line will be constructed in the Tongi-Akhaura-Laksam section. In addition, a policy decision has been made to construct a cord line in the Narayanganj-Cumilla section to reduce the distance of the railway. He said that there are also plans to establish a rail connection between Dhaka and Manikganj.

Asked whether the previous governments also had these plans, the minister said that the railway line was built earlier, but the engines and bogies were not purchased. From now on, along with the construction of the railway line, the engines and bogies will also be purchased and the projects will be implemented differently.