Tk 48cr projects to develop Chittagong city roads

The commuters in the port city hope to get rid of sufferings to a significant extent as the government allocated around Tk 48 crore for development of the city roads under two separate Annual Development Programme (ADP)-enlisted projects.
The government in its Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting on Wednesday made this allocation for the development projects to be implemented by Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) and Chittagong Development Authority (CDA).
Of them, CCC got Tk 23 crore for repair and development of 66 roads while CDA got Tk 24.44 crore for widening of Firingee Bazar-Sadarghat road.
The allocation would help CCC repair and develop around 40-km stretch of the damaged and worn-out roads having a total length of over 600km, said the sources.
Under the ADP-enlisted project of CDA the 5-km Firingee Bazar-Sadarghat road would be widened up to 60-ft from the previous 20-ft. Of the project cost, Tk 18.70 crore would be spent for land acquisition while the rest for the development of the road, said the sources in CDA.
Besides, the road would have 5-ft wide drains and footpaths on both the sides apart from necessary road divider, they said.
Meanwhile, Project Proforma (PPs) were finalised and expected to have ECNEC approval by June for development of another three city roads involving Tk 95 crore, sources said.
That includes Tk 40.52 crore project for development of Bayezid Bostami road, Tk 19.68 crore project for Loop Road by-passing Asian Women University and Tk 35 crore project for widening and development of Kapashgola Road stretching from Gani Bakery to Bahaddarhat enroute to Chawkbazar intersection.
The Bayezid Bostami Road Project already has the approval at pre-ECNEC meeting while the Loop Road and Kapashgola Road projects were going to the pre-ECNEC meeting soon.
While talking to The Daily Star, CDA Chairman Shah Muhammad Akhter Uddin yesterday said, “The measures were taken at a cabinet meeting on January 06, 2003 to upgrade Chittagong as a full-fledged commercial capital in the true sense.”
Meanwhile, CCC considers the allocation for development of the city roads as an achievement after around three years.
“Under the Tk 23 crore project CCC would repair and renovate the damaged and worn-out roads side by side with constructing the incomplete-roads near the coastal embankment and low-lying areas,” said CCC Acting Mayor M Manjurul Alam.
“We also expect to have approval for another three development projects involving Tk 75 crore to construct roads in the areas in and around Moheshkhal and Rajakhali Bridge and to set up a garbage treatment plant,” the mayor told The Daily Star yesterday.