01 Aug 2017, 00:19:38
Dhaka metro construction finally begins tomorrow
JICA-designed traffic-management plan for congested city awaits clearance
Munima Sultana
Construction of the much-vaunted Dhaka metro begins tomorrow (Wednesday), amid challenges of doing the work smoothly through the cramped capital city where millions move through congestion.
As planned, building the country's first metro rail commences with the construction work on the corridor from Uttara to Agargaon.
Italian-Thai Development PLC which won the work of developing the first half of the elevated metro rail has already started gathering equipment near the Met Office in Agargaon to kick off work on one of the major communications infrastructures.
However, the project office is yet to issue work order. And the authorities were yet to clear the JICA-designed traffic-management plan for the period of construction of the median metro (it will run overhead through the middle of the city streets).
Sources said the project office is still facing challenges involving completion of necessary procedures as per requirements for the issuance of work order. But it plans to issue the order today (Monday).
"There will be any end of challenges in the first-of-its-kind metro-rail project," said an official involved with the process of issuance of the work order.
Sources said the project office is yet to get the land selected for construction yard and sites to develop piers and stations of the 10- kilometre corridor from the authorities concerned.
Besides, utility-shifting works which started in November last are also considered a challenge against the construction work as the project office has yet to manage different utility-shifting authorities in completing respective works within their targeted times.
This correspondent visited Sunday the MRT line-6 Agargaon site and found the company carrying out survey work on the street with the target of launching the metro-rail construction on August 02.
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader will formally inaugurate Wednesday the Ital-Thai work by launching test piling at Agargaon.
Officials said 10 to 12 test pilings will be conducted to confirm load of the MRT line-6. The first one will be conducted at Agargaon and Diyabazar.
Sources said Dhaka North City Corporation, the owner of the land of entire corridor including stations and viaducts, had not yet handed over the site to the project office.
Although Public Works Department handed over 1.7 hectares of land located in Statistics Road, the project office could not get hold of the land as it is occupied by Dhaka Metropolitan Police for dumping vehicles, seized during different drives.
The DMRTD has already requested the DMP to remove the dumped vehicles from the mortuary.
Admitting all these challenges, the officials, however, said privilege of this project is that there is no such need for land acquisition. It is learnt only 32-decimal private land at Uttara would be needed for setting up the Uttara station.
They said resettlement plan taken under the project to rehabilitate affected traders and businessmen would be executed with the proceeding of piling work after confirmation of the design.
The government took the initiative to develop the country's first metro- rail corridor known as Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line-6 from Uttara to Motijheel in 2009 by dividing the 20.1-kilometre route into two parts.
DMRTD Project office already awarded the first 10km route to the Italian-Thai firm in April and signed agreement in May being the lowest bidder with the target to inaugurate this part by 2019, the year crucial for winning the next general election.
The second part of the work will take more time as the project office has recently selected prequalified companies for the work. The Tk 220 billion DMRTD project, however, launched the project field-level work last year by awarding a Japanese company to develop the land for the MRT depot.
The entire work of the MRT corridor development has been designed in eight components.
Dhaka metro construction finally begins tomorrow
JICA-designed traffic-management plan for congested city awaits clearance
Munima Sultana
Construction of the much-vaunted Dhaka metro begins tomorrow (Wednesday), amid challenges of doing the work smoothly through the cramped capital city where millions move through congestion.
As planned, building the country's first metro rail commences with the construction work on the corridor from Uttara to Agargaon.
Italian-Thai Development PLC which won the work of developing the first half of the elevated metro rail has already started gathering equipment near the Met Office in Agargaon to kick off work on one of the major communications infrastructures.
However, the project office is yet to issue work order. And the authorities were yet to clear the JICA-designed traffic-management plan for the period of construction of the median metro (it will run overhead through the middle of the city streets).
Sources said the project office is still facing challenges involving completion of necessary procedures as per requirements for the issuance of work order. But it plans to issue the order today (Monday).
"There will be any end of challenges in the first-of-its-kind metro-rail project," said an official involved with the process of issuance of the work order.
Sources said the project office is yet to get the land selected for construction yard and sites to develop piers and stations of the 10- kilometre corridor from the authorities concerned.
Besides, utility-shifting works which started in November last are also considered a challenge against the construction work as the project office has yet to manage different utility-shifting authorities in completing respective works within their targeted times.
This correspondent visited Sunday the MRT line-6 Agargaon site and found the company carrying out survey work on the street with the target of launching the metro-rail construction on August 02.
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader will formally inaugurate Wednesday the Ital-Thai work by launching test piling at Agargaon.
Officials said 10 to 12 test pilings will be conducted to confirm load of the MRT line-6. The first one will be conducted at Agargaon and Diyabazar.
Sources said Dhaka North City Corporation, the owner of the land of entire corridor including stations and viaducts, had not yet handed over the site to the project office.
Although Public Works Department handed over 1.7 hectares of land located in Statistics Road, the project office could not get hold of the land as it is occupied by Dhaka Metropolitan Police for dumping vehicles, seized during different drives.
The DMRTD has already requested the DMP to remove the dumped vehicles from the mortuary.
Admitting all these challenges, the officials, however, said privilege of this project is that there is no such need for land acquisition. It is learnt only 32-decimal private land at Uttara would be needed for setting up the Uttara station.
They said resettlement plan taken under the project to rehabilitate affected traders and businessmen would be executed with the proceeding of piling work after confirmation of the design.
The government took the initiative to develop the country's first metro- rail corridor known as Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line-6 from Uttara to Motijheel in 2009 by dividing the 20.1-kilometre route into two parts.
DMRTD Project office already awarded the first 10km route to the Italian-Thai firm in April and signed agreement in May being the lowest bidder with the target to inaugurate this part by 2019, the year crucial for winning the next general election.
The second part of the work will take more time as the project office has recently selected prequalified companies for the work. The Tk 220 billion DMRTD project, however, launched the project field-level work last year by awarding a Japanese company to develop the land for the MRT depot.
The entire work of the MRT corridor development has been designed in eight components.
