Padma Bridge Rail Link project

Chinese firm picked

The government has finalised a Chinese government enterprise — China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC), though without inviting a tender, to implement the Padma Bridge Rail Link project to connect Dhaka with Jessore through the Padma bridge. The Railway Ministry has prepared a proposal in this regard to be placed at the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs today, sources in the ministry informed.  The Padma Bridge Rail Link project would be implemented on a government-to-government (G2G) basis, funded by the Chinese Government, the sources added. Railways Secretary Firoz Salah Uddin stated that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on January 28 last year to implement the rail link project.
“Under the project, 172km railways main line, 43.02km loop line and 14 new stations—Keraniganj, Nimtola, Srinagar, Mawa, Jajira, Shibchor, Bhanga Jongshon, Nagorkanda, Mukshudpur, Moheshpur, Lohagora, Norail, Jamdiya and Padmabila—will be built,” the proposal said. According to the proposal, the Dhaka-Mawa line will be 44.32km long and the Janjira-Bhanga line 31.85km long. Under this plan, the train will leave from Kamalapur of Dhaka through Gendaria, crossing 44km through Munshiganj and 5km over Padma Bridge to Zajira, the other side of the river. Of the proposed railway, the elevated portion would be constructed starting from Nimtala of Keraniganj, ending at Gandaria in Dhaka, connecting the line with the existing Kamalapur-Narayanganj line.
Besides, 66 large railway bridges, 244 smaller bridges, 30 level-crossings, one road bridge and three flyovers will have to be built, under the project proposal.
Officials in the Railway Ministry said they had plans to start either the Dhaka-Mawa or the Bhanga-Janjira link track before the inauguration of Padma Multipurpose Bridge in 2018 and complete it by 2022. For implementing

the project, the Chinese Government will provide Tk 25,960.67 crore for 2 per cent interest on loan with a repayment period of 15 years, including a five-year grace period. The loan also carries 0.2 per cent commitment fees and 0.2 per cent management fees.
A high official of the Railways Ministry informed that work will start as soon as possible after getting approval from the Economic Affairs Committee. “We want to kick off the train service in 2018, on the very day that the Padma Bridge opens,” he said.
On December 12, 2015, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the construction work of the 6.15km Padma Multipurpose Bridge at Jajira point in Shariatpur district.
The government is building the Padma bridge, the country’s largest infrastructure, with its own fund of Tk 28,000 crore.
On completion of the project, nearly six crore people of the 19 southern districts will be connected with the rest of the country, including the capital Dhaka. The work on the Padma Bridge is broadly divided into five parts—the main bridge, river training, two link roads and infrastructure (service area) construction. The two-tier Padma Bridge has the provisions for movement of vehicles on the upper tier of the bridge and operation of train on the lower tier.
The China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Corporation was appointed for construction of the main bridge, while China’s Sinohydro Corporation for the river training. Local firm Abdul Monem Limited has been awarded the contract for the construction of two approach roads and infrastructure development. Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) and Korea Expressway Corporation and Associates are supervising the bridge construction. In 2014, the government signed contracts with the two Chinese companies for construction of the main bridge and the river training work.

 

Padma Bridge Rail Link project

Chinese firm picked

The government has finalised a Chinese government enterprise China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC), though without inviting a tender, to implement the Padma Bridge Rail Link project to connect Dhaka with Jessore through the Padma bridge. The Railway Ministry has prepared a proposal in this regard to be placed at the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs today, sources in the ministry informed. The Padma Bridge Rail Link project would be implemented on a government-to-government (G2G) basis, funded by the Chinese Government, the sources added. Railways Secretary Firoz Salah Uddin stated that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on January 28 last year to implement the rail link project. Under the project, 172km railways main line, 43.02km loop line and 14 new stationsKeraniganj, Nimtola, Srinagar, Mawa, Jajira, Shibchor, Bhanga Jongshon, Nagorkanda, Mukshudpur, Moheshpur, Lohagora, Norail, Jamdiya and Padmabilawill be built, the proposal said. According to the proposal, the Dhaka-Mawa line will be 44.32km long and the Janjira-Bhanga line 31.85km long. Under this plan, the train will leave from Kamalapur of Dhaka through Gendaria, crossing 44km through Munshiganj and 5km over Padma Bridge to Zajira, the other side of the river. Of the proposed railway, the elevated portion would be constructed starting from Nimtala of Keraniganj, ending at Gandaria in Dhaka, connecting the line with the existing Kamalapur-Narayanganj line. Besides, 66 large railway bridges, 244 smaller bridges, 30 level-crossings, one road bridge and three flyovers will have to be built, under the project proposal. Officials in the Railway Ministry said they had plans to start either the Dhaka-Mawa or the Bhanga-Janjira link track before the inauguration of Padma Multipurpose Bridge in 2018 and complete it by 2022. For implementing the project, the Chinese Government will provide Tk 25,960.67 crore for 2 per cent interest on loan with a repayment period of 15 years, including a five-year grace period. The loan also carries 0.2 per cent commitment fees and 0.2 per cent management fees. A high official of the Railways Ministry informed that work will start as soon as possible after getting approval from the Economic Affairs Committee. We want to kick off the train service in 2018, on the very day that the Padma Bridge opens, he said. On December 12, 2015, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the construction work of the 6.15km Padma Multipurpose Bridge at Jajira point in Shariatpur district. The government is building the Padma bridge, the countrys largest infrastructure, with its own fund of Tk 28,000 crore. On completion of the project, nearly six crore people of the 19 southern districts will be connected with the rest of the country, including the capital Dhaka. The work on the Padma Bridge is broadly divided into five partsthe main bridge, river training, two link roads and infrastructure (service area) construction. The two-tier Padma Bridge has the provisions for movement of vehicles on the upper tier of the bridge and operation of train on the lower tier. The China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Corporation was appointed for construction of the main bridge, while Chinas Sinohydro Corporation for the river training. Local firm Abdul Monem Limited has been awarded the contract for the construction of two approach roads and infrastructure development. Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) and Korea Expressway Corporation and Associates are supervising the bridge construction. In 2014, the government signed contracts with the two Chinese companies for construction of the main bridge and the river training work.