Published on 04:27 PM, April 28, 2014

Cabinet okays draft metro rail act

Cabinet okays draft metro rail act

Star file photo
Star file photo

Cabinet today approved the draft of Metro Rail Act, 2014 in order to constitute a company for the operation and management of metro rail in the capital, keeping special provision for land accusation.
The name of the company would be Dhaka Mass Transit Company Ltd, Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said while briefing reporters after the cabinet meeting.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina chaired meeting at the Cabinet Division in Bangladesh Secretariat.
Under the act, Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line-6 route will be constructed from Uttara to Bangladesh Bank via Pallabi, Farmgate and Shahbagh. It will cover 16 stations in its route.
Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority will be charged with monitoring the MRT line, he said.   
Musharraf said the land accusation for the project will be done complying with those of Padma bridge project and Bangabandhu bridge project.
The project will be carried out under Public Private Property (PPP), he said.
The draft act containing nine chapters and 45 provisions include issues like fare of the passengers, accidents and emergencies and different rules and regulation.
Anyone attempting to set up the line without license from the authorities concerned would be awarded a 10-year jail term and fined Tk 1 crore, while anyone trying to halt the route illegally will deserve one year’s jail and Tk 5 lakh fine, the draft act stipulates.
Also the draft act narrates penalty for different terms for the passengers who will try to get in without ticket.
The cabinet also approved Government Transport (Usage Control) Act-2014 and Investment Corporation of Bangladesh Act-2014. Both acts were ordinances, promulgated in 1986 and 1976 respectively of the military administration.
Later in 2013, the High Court declared illegal the two military regimes.
A proposal to sign agreement on economic and technical cooperation with Egypt was also approved in the cabinet meeting, Musharraf said.