Light at end of tunnel for Uttara third phase

After several years of delay, the Rajdhani Unnayan Katripakkha (Rajuk) believes it can complete the 2,160-acre Uttara third phase residential project before its December deadline this year.

Rajuk claims 80 percent of the work has been completed.

“We have already completed construction of 135 km road out of 165 km and also 92 percent of land development works,” said Project Director Golam Mostafa in an interview.

He added that 80 percent work of the twelve bridges and 35 percent work of the 8.5km 300 feet wide lake has been completed.

This Tk 2,340 crore project would be the home of 10 lakh people.

The project has designated spaces for civic amenities for schools and colleges, hospitals, business centres, movie theatres, auditoriums, playgrounds, sports centres, swimming pools and community centres, Mostafa pointed out, adding that spaces have also been allocated for mosques, temples and pagodas.

These amenities alone took three fourth of the project space, he said.

The area has been divided into four sectors, 15, 16, 17 and 18, having 34 blocks and each will have a park, he said.

Several avenues, 110 to 210 feet wide, have been constructed to connect the area with old Uttara, Mirpur, Pallabi and Ashulia.

The project includes plots for a police station and an intelligence agency office. Lands have been allocated for fire service and passport office also.

Dhaka Electric Supply Company has installed electricity poles throughout the area while Rajuk is seeking government approval for gas connection, which has remained restricted since 2010 due to gas supply shortfall.

Dhaka Water Supply and Sewage Authority is also installing deep tube-wells to ensure water supplies.

In addition to having designated bus terminal in the area, Uttara third phase is also the starting point for the country's first metro rail project. Rajuk has given 59 acres of lands to facilitate metro rail construction and its storage facilities.

Project director Golam Mostafa notes that once completed, Uttara third phase project would create jobs for at least two lakh people in local business, education and other sectors.

“We had visited several residential projects in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and India before we designed the project…This will be an iconic project if we succeed in achieving the goals,” he said.

Located at the north-west corner of the capital, surrounded by the Tongi-Ashulia Beribadh in the north and Ashulia-Mirpur Beribadh in the west, this project was launched in 1999 with the goal to complete it within five years.