The government has cleared a Tk 3.69 billion project to upgrade the Jatrabari (Mayor Hanif Flyover) – Demra (Sultana Kamal Bridge) in to a four-lane road.

The approval came on Tuesday (Jan 22) during a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) presided over by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the NEC Conference Room in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area, reports BSS.

Briefing the media after the meeting, Planning Minister MA Mannan said that a total of eight projects were approved involving an overall estimated cost of Tk 18.93 billion. “The total expenditure of all the projects will be funded by the government.”

Of the approved eight projects, seven are new while another one is a revised project.

The Roads and Highways Department under the Road Transport and Highways Division will implement the project by June 2020 with entire government fund.

The Planning Minister said the Jatrabari-Demra-Shimrail-Narayanganj (Chashara) is an important regional highway which is connected with two important highways Dhaka-Chattogram National Highway (N-1) and Dhaka-Sylhet National Highway (N-2). “Under the circumstances, the project was placed in the day’s meeting and was approved,” added the official.

The main project objectives include upgrading the Jatrabari-Demra Highway into four-lane, ensuring smooth plying of vehicles through minimizing traffic congestion, introducing separate service lanes for the plying of engine-based and engine-less vehicles and thus reducing accident tendency to a big extent.

An official at the Roads and Highways Division said that the vehicles to and from Sylhet usually avoid the Kanchpur Bridge due to traffic congestion and use the Tarabo-Jatrabari road which is 10km long and 7.3 meter wide.

Under the proposed project, the road would be upgraded into four-lane with a width of 15.60 meter. Besides, there will be separate service lanes for the slow-moving vehicles.

The main project operations include 0.0728 hectare land acquisition, some 400,000 cubic meter earth works, construction of four-lane main carriage way, construction of 6.64km service lane, construction of 8 underpasses, construction of PC girder bridge, over bridge, and drains with footpath.

Referring to the approval of the Chollisha(Bagra)-Kunia-Medni-Razurbazar Link Highway Project with Tk 2.57billion under Netrakona district, the Planning Minister MA Mannan said this highway would facilitate the communication of the people of haor region of Netrakona and Sunamganj.

The other projects approved in the meeting are Eradication of PPR Disease and control of Hand-Foot-and-Mouth Disease with Tk 3.45 billion, Production and marketing of nutrition enriched high-value crops to alleviate poverty with Tk 2.06 billion, Development of existing 7 textile vocational institutes and establishment of 6 textile vocational institutes with Taka 3.54 nillion, Museum building extension and construction of other physical infrastructures of Bangladesh Folk Art and Craft Foundation with Tk 1.47 billion, Extension of Gopalganj BSCIC Industrial Estate (3rd Revision) with Tk 1.02 bollion, Construction of 9 narrow bridges and replacing 9 dilapidated bridges with RCC/Girder bridges on Gobindaganj-Chatak-Doarabazar road with Tk 1.12 billion.

Ministers and State Ministers attended the meeting while Planning Commission members and secretaries concerned were present.