Railway inks Tk193cr feasibility study contract for 11 projects

The Bangladesh Railway (BR) signed a Tk193.64 crore contract with a consortium for their consultancy services for 11 projects under the Railway Connectivity Improvement Preparatory Facility (RCIPF) on Tuesday.

The joint venture of three companies – Oriental Consultants Global of Japan, EGIS Rail of France and HSS Integrated of Malaysia – in association with Bangladesh's KS Consultants, SODEV Consult International, STRATEGI Consulting, DevConsultants and SARM Associates will carry out the feasibility studies and prepare detailed designs and development project proposals for the projects in 30 months.

The 11 projects include a chord line from Dhaka to Cumilla via Narayanganj to reduce the distance between Dhaka and Chattogram by 90 kilometres and travel time by one-and-a-half hours, say Bangladesh Railway officials.

Apart from the chord line, the consulting firms will carry out the feasibility study and detailed design for a new bridge parallel to the existing century-old Hardinge Bridge over Padma river that has already recorded 110 years of use and counting.

The consortium will also prepare a study and detailed design for the construction of a broad gauge line parallel to the existing Abdulpur-Rajshahi section and Abdulpur-Santahar-Parbatipur section including Abdulpur bypass; construction of a new broad gauge line from Santahar to Amnur in Chapainawabganj; conversion of existing metre gauge section from Santahar to Lalmonirhat via Bogura, Kaunia into dual gauge or broad gauge line and building dual gauge or broad gauge line parallel to the existing line; conversion of existing metre gauge line into dual gauge or broad gauge line from Bhairab Bazar to Mymensingh and construction of dual gauge or broad gauge line parallel to the existing metre gauge line; construction of a new broad gauge line parallel to existing Jashore-Benapole line; and conversion of existing metre gauge line into dual gauge line from Bangabandhu Bridge East to Dewanganj Bazar via Tarakandi, Jamalpur, including the construction of Tongi bypass.

The firm will also assess the future demand for rolling stocks, prepare core and non-core business plans for BR and carry out a need analysis for establishing a signalling training centre for BR, among others.

In June 2020, the government approved Tk235.37 crore Technical Assistance Project, with the Asian Development Bank providing Tk167.14 as a loan for feasibility study and detailed design of the 11 projects.

In the contract signing ceremony, Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan asked the firms to complete tasks within the stipulated time.

He also urged the BR official to avail of clauses of penalty, if the companies fail to complete tasks in time.

"The railway sector is an integral part of the country's development. So the government has taken a master-plan to develop the railway, and as part of that plan, it has taken a number of projects to improve line capacity, safety of operation, improve maintenance and save operating cost to meet the growing demand. And this contract signing is the initial work of the projects," said Nurul Islam Sujan.

The minister also expressed optimism that the Bangladesh Railway will make a consultant team of its own with the expert railway officials.