Train services via Padma Bridge to begin from Jun: Railways minister

Train services between Dhaka and Bhanga upazila of Faridpur through Padma Multipurpose Bridge will begin in June this year, Railways Minister Md Nurul Islam Sujon said on Tuesday.

“We are working to meet the goal,” Sujan expressed his optimism while inspecting the progress of the Padma Bridge Rail Link Project in Dogachi area of Munshiganj this noon.

Setting up the railway tracks on the Padma Bridge Rail Link is going on at a fast pace and the overall progress of the project work now stands at 73 percent, he said.

Train operation between Kamalpur and Gandaria has been suspended to ensure a smooth working environment, he said, adding that the construction works on Dhaka and Mawa part have become a major challenge, he said.

Responding to a query, he said he is satisfied with the progress of the work of the project.

While inspecting the progress of the Padma Bridge Rail Link project in May last year at Louhajong upazila of Munshiganj, Sujan said a target has been set to operate trains from Dhaka to Faridpur's Bhanga on March 26, 2023.

If not possible, the train operations will begin in June, said the railways minister on that day.

According to the working paper on the Padma Railway Bridge, the landmark railway project is being implemented in three sections, namely, Dhaka-Mawa, Mawa-Bhanga, and Bhanga-Jashore, respectively.

Once the project is fully implemented, direct rail communication between Dhaka and the south-western regions of the country will be established, bringing Munshiganj, Shariatpur, Madaripur and Narail districts under a new rail network.

Moreover, another sub-route of the Trans-Asian Railway Network from Dhaka to Kolkata via Jashore and Benapole can be launched, allowing operations of national and international freight and broad-gauge container train movement along this route.

The Padma Bridge Rail Link project is expected to increase Bangladesh's GDP by 1 percent.

The development project proforma of the project was approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council on May 3, 2016, with an estimated cost of Tk 34,988.8 crore and the deadline for completion of the project was June 30th, 2022.

On May 22, 2018, the ECNEC enhanced the project cost again taking the total cost to Tk 39,246.8 crore in the revised budget.

The Chinese preferential buyer's credit amounted to Tk 21,036.69 crore which came from China Export Import Bank.

The ECNEC on the same day also extended its completion deadline by two more years to 2024.