ADB loan deal for Chattogram rail project likely in Dec

CHATTOGRAM, Nov 28: The government is likely to sign an agreement with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in December for the development of a 45km dual gauge double rail line project stretching from Pahartali to Dohazari in Chattogram.
Expected to take place in December, a delegation from the ADB will visit Bangladesh to formally sign the agreement.
The Bangladesh Railway is set to undertake the conversion of the Chattogram-Dohazari meter gauge rail line into a dual gauge system by June 2028, supported by a loan of Tk 70.85 billion (7,085.64 crore) from the ADB.
Previously sanctioned by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC), the project budget stands at Tk 107.97 billion. Its primary aim is to enhance safety, speed, and uninterrupted rail connectivity between Cox's Bazar, a significant tourism city, and Chattogram.
The key project operations encompass converting 80.76 kilometers of track to dual gauge, deploying computer-based interlocking signal and interlocking systems, reconstructing three station buildings, renovating 14 station buildings, rebuilding 20 major bridges and 68 minor bridges, erecting three rail overpasses, and procuring 30 meter gauge diesel-electric locomotives.
Bangladesh Railway sources have indicated that following the approval, the organization will proceed with the selection of a contractor to commence the project's construction phase.
However, there is one single gauge single line since the past British period.