Underground railway link at Dhaka

Shamsul Arefin's article on the subject, published in the Financial Express on 19th July is a wishful thinking only. The reality will need tremendous changes that could cost the earth. Lest we forget, greater Dhaka and surrounding work areas cover from Narayangunj to Tongi that could well extend to Joydevpur by the next decade or so.

Passenger traffic in this sector Narayangunj-Dhaka-Joydebpur may possibly double. Having underground railway with oil fired IC engines either steam or electric motor-driven, will need adequate extensive and fresh air circulation in the tunnels to ensure that all dangerous carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide gases are out of the system.

Given our crying shortage of power, even to meet normal consumer loads in the greater Dhaka area from Narayanganj to Tongi now and soon including Joydebpur; the power requirement for such an air exhaust and forced draft system for the tunnels could well be around say 1000 MW. This power has to be continuous and uninterrupted; otherwise there will be gas poisoning and even fatalities. Alternatively, this whole system of railways for this sector needs to be electrified. The power requirement will be simply colossal.

What we need today, the sooner the better, is uninterrupted power supply for all the urban areas of Bangladesh covering all upazilla headquarters and important townships and trading centres at least. This we should aim to have by say around 2025; for which at least another 10,000 MW of electric power will be a must. Given these factual realities the proposal will have to remain a pipe dream till, say, the last quarter of this century, if at all.

Engr S A Mansoor

Dhaka