Thai Airways will pay the government Tk 52 crore in the next 10 years. "In the first three years, the Thai Airways will be paying Tk 3.5 crore a year," Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Mir Mohammad Nasiruddin told the press after yesterday's committee meeting where the approval came from.

Civil aviation sources said the airport now incurs around Tk45 crore in loss a year.

"No officials or employees of the airport will be retrenched. The new management will absorbed them," explained Finance Minister M Saifur Rahman, who chaired the meeting, told the press later.

The committee also approved a Tk 40 crore toll management contract with a private company for the Meghna and Meghna-Gumti bridges. The company will set up toll collection equipment at the bridges, collect tolls and deposit them with the national exchequer. The company will get Tk 5 crore for as many years of service.

The committee, however, rejected a Power Division proposal to set up the 450 megawatt Sirajganj Power Plant that was awarded to single bidder Summit Group as it found flaws in the proposal.

It also approved setting up of a medical college in Dinajpur, rehabilitation of Dhaka-Sylhet road and some other schemes.