Bangabandhu tunnel inauguration likely in September

The much-awaited Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel, the first under-river tunnel in South Asia, is expected to open for traffic in September next.

“Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will open the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel built beneath the Karnaphuli River in Chattogram,” Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said at a function in Dhaka on Wednesday.

He said the multilane tunnel will directly connect the Chattogram port with Anwara upazila, which will directly connect Cox’s Bazar with Chattogram.

According to the project details, related work of the tunnel is being completed. The tunnel is being constructed at a depth of 18 to 31 metres under the Karnaphuli River and the length of the main tunnel is 3.32km.

The length of each of the two tubes, having four lanes, is 2.45km. There will be 5.35km connecting roads at the western and eastern ends of the main tunnel and a 727m flyover at the Anwara end.

Talking to BSS, Project Director (PD) of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel Md Harunur Rashid Chowdhury said construction work of the tunnel is near to complete as the progress of work has reached 97 per cent.

“We are completing necessary and related works for opening the tunnel in time. We have already constructed the ap-proach road. Now security works are going on to ensure the safety of the tunnel,” he said.

Communication experts said the tunnel will become “one city with two towns” and the passageway being constructed be-neath the Karnaphuli River.

They said the tunnel is a pragmatic step in the right direction for Bangladesh that will boost the economy and improve the life standard of the people of the country.

Earlier, the government opened the Padma Bridge, which was considered to be the major important infrastructure of the country.

Through the opening of the Padma Bridge, partly of metro rail and Bangabandhu tunnel, Bangladesh’s gross domestic product (GDP) will increase by over 2 per cent, the experts stated. Harunur Rashid, however, said apart from the comple-tion of the work of four lanes of two tubes, other related works are also in the final stage.

He expressed that the construction work of the tunnel will be finished within the stipulated time.

Earlier, Mahbubul Alam, president of the Chattogram Chamber of Commerce and Industries, told BSS that the tunnel, the first-ever one in the country, will unlock a new epoch in the history of the communication systems in the region.

“Once the tunnel is opened, it will be a game changer for the southeast region of Bangladesh, presenting a solution to the connectivity with the rest of the country,” he said.