Bangabandhu Tunnel: Chinese firm appointed for maintenance, toll collection

The government has appointed the China Communications Construction Company Limited for the maintenance and toll collection of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel under the River Karnaphuli in Chattogram.

The Chinese company, which is now building the tunnel, is going to take charge as a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase with Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in the chair gave the go-ahead on Wednesday, Md Abdul Barik, additional secretary to the Cabinet Division, told the media.

The company will be entrusted with the job for five years, which will cost the government around Tk984 crore.

The 3.32km long tunnel is expected to be opened to traffic next December.

The tunnel, at a depth of 18-43 metres below the riverbed, will connect Anwara and Karnaphuli upazilas on the south bank of the River Karnaphuli River with the port city. The project was conceived to develop the Chattogram city following the model of "One City, Two Towns" in China's Shanghai city. The tunnel will reduce the distance from Chattogram to Cox's Bazar by 40 kilometres, with vehicles plying it reaching speeds of 80km per hour.

Besides, the Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase also approved the appointment of the joint venture of four companies – Sellhorn, WSP, KS, and Aqua – as consultants for the Bay Terminal construction project under the Chattogram Port Authority. It will cost Tk51.3 crore.

The size of the bay terminal will be 5-6 times larger than Chattogram port and will be able to accommodate ships of any depth. Once the terminal is ready, the government expects that the country's import-export costs will come down.

The government has also appointed the joint venture of National Development Engineers Ltd and Hasan Techno Builders Ltd for the construction of three underpasses and Paduar Bazar Intersection U-loop on Dhaka-Chattogram highway at a cost of Tk289.75 crore.

Besides, the cabinet committee gave its consent to a proposal to procure 1 lakh tonnes of Muriate of Potash from Dubai-based Falco General Trading LLC at a cost of Tk931 crore under a direct purchase method.

The committee also approved the proposal to import 60,000 tonnes of urea fertiliser from Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet on Economic Affairs in principle okayed the appointment of local vendors who in exchange for service charges will supply Electronic Fiscal Devices or Sells Data Controller machines across the country. They will also monitor use of these machines and collect data on retail VAT collection.

Additional Secretary Abdul Barik said initially, 3 lakh machines will be supplied through outsourcing in Dhaka city, north-south and east-west areas outside the city and areas under Chattogram Customs. They will charge a fee for such services.

Besides, the committee in principle gave approval to a project for purifying water from the River Meghna on the public private partnership basis through a government-to-government process to meet the demand of water in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Shilpa Nagar, the largest economic zone of the country developed in Mirsarai and Chattogram.

The industrial city has a daily water demand of 10 crore litres, which will double in the next five years. If industries are set up in the entire economic zone, the demand will increase to hundreds of millions of litres. So, the government is planning to take water from the Meghna River to meet this water demand. For this, a 133km pipeline will be laid.