-Dhaka-Narayanganj dual gauge incomplete in 9 yrs
- Tongi-Joidebpur section cost increased by 300 pc
- Khulna-Mongla project was Tk 1700cr, later Tk 4200cr
- Inexperienced contractors left the construction work
Despite the increase in time and cost, the work of several railway projects has not been completed. Even some of the mega projects of the railways have been floundering for the last few years. The projects cannot be implemented despite increasing the time with the project cost. In some cases, contractors left halfway through. Calling for new proposals later is a waste of time and money. But those projects are very important for expanding the railway network. There are already concerns about the timely implementation of Dhaka-Narayanganj Railway Project, Dhaka-Tongi Joydebpur Project, Madukhali-Kamarkhali-Magura Project, Khulna-Mongla Port Project.
Many times the cost and time of those projects increased. But despite the lack of experience, those projects went to inexperienced contractors. This information is known from sources related to the Ministry of Railways. According to related sources, Dhaka-Narayanganj dual gauge railway line construction project was undertaken in the last year 2015 at a cost of about Tk 378 crore. The project was scheduled to be completed by June 2017. But even after 9 years, the project has not seen the light due to negligence of the contractor. A foreign company named Power China was implementing the project. The cost of that project is now Tk 660 crore. Despite repeated requests, the foreign contractor has delayed for years. Finally the work order of the contractor was cancelled. A few days ago, tenders were called again for the implementation of the project. However, the company was not held liable or penalized for the delay and losses incurred by the railways. However, according to the project manager, the work of the project is 47 and half percent complete. Moreover, the construction cost of the second dual gauge line in Tongi-Joidebpur section and the third and fourth dual gauge line in Dhaka-Tongi section has increased by almost 300 percent.
Although the project is supposed to be completed in 2023, it has been proposed to extend the period by five years till 2027. The estimated cost of the project was estimated at around Tk 850 crore. Now it has been proposed to increase the cost of the project to Tk 3 thousand 350 crore. Mainly due to the negligence of the contractor, the implementation of the project has been repeatedly delayed. And due to non-delivery of raw materials for the construction of railway lines and other infrastructure on time, a lot of time was lost in the project.
Due to these reasons the implementation work has been delayed. Eight years of project work has already been completed. No one could say precisely when the work will be completed in the future. According to sources, the cost of construction of railway line from Madhukhali in Faridpur to Magura via Gopalganj, which is about 25 km long, was estimated to be around tk 1 thousand 200 crore. The project is divided into two parts. Castle Construction has got the work of the first part of the railway and the second part of the bridge is being done by Mir Akhtar Hossain Limited. The stalled project brought misery to the people of Magura. Even in the last five years, not even one-fourth of the work on both the rail and bridge sections has been completed. Even if this work is completed in the near future, the cost of the project will increase significantly.
Those implementing the project have no experience. As a result, the project has been stalled for a long time. Besides, two railway lines have been constructed from Mongla and Akhaura to Agartala. However, those two projects have been implemented with Indian loans. In the meantime, a train has started running on the Khulna-Mongla route, but no train has run on the Akhaura-Agartala line so far. In 2010, the Khulna-Mongla railway project was taken up at a cost of about Tk 1,700 crore, but the work was not completed in three years, but after revising the project five times, the cost increased to Tk 4,200 crore in 13 years.
In this context, a senior official of the Ministry of Railways said that the government will evaluate such projects of the railways. In this case, who is negligent will be found out. In some cases the contract will also be re-evaluated.
ZH
