Construction of Ganges Barrage begins in 2012
Sunday, 11 July 2010
Construction of the giant Ganges Barrage, a decades old mega project for sustainable solution to country's socio-economic and environmental problems is expected to begin in 2012, reports BSS.
"We are taking preparation to launch the construction of the Tk 59 billion (5,900 crore) barrage by 2012 to recover the navigability of some tributaries of the major Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna river system. The project will help Bangladesh to take counter measures to address the environmental and socio-economic hazards caused by Farakka Barrage," officials said.
The project was first conceived in 1964 and several feasibility studies had been done. But successive governments could not finalise a site for the barrage.
After coming to power,
the present government asked the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) to take over the feasibility study again at Tk 343.5 million and gave three years' timeframe to start the main construction work.
In line with the present government's earnest desire, the BWDB in May, 2009 appointed Development Design Consultants Limited (DDC), an international consortium, for studying the feasibility and detailed engineering aspects of the project.
Director of the Ganges Barrage Project Ahsanul Alam told the news agency that the consulting firm with the overall supervision of the BWDB has primarily selected two sites for construction of the barrage, one at Pangsha of Rajbari district and other at Kumarkhali in Kushtia.
He said about 50 per cent work of the feasibility study has been completed in the first phase. In the second phase, he said, technical plan and design of the scheme will be prepared. By this time the selection of final site will be completed, he added.
The Ganges Barrage has been designed to save the south-west and northern parts of the country from dryness and salinity of the rivers in the region.
It will bring one-third areas of the country under irrigation and save the world heritage site Sundarbans and Bhabadah from salinity, help preserve their bio-diversity and improve overall environment.
The whole riverine system in the south-western and northern parts of the country would get back their navigability once the barrage is constructed, the officials said.
The western part of the country which constitutes 37 per cent of the total area of the country and where country's one-third population live depends on the water of the river Ganges (Padma).
"We are taking preparation to launch the construction of the Tk 59 billion (5,900 crore) barrage by 2012 to recover the navigability of some tributaries of the major Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna river system. The project will help Bangladesh to take counter measures to address the environmental and socio-economic hazards caused by Farakka Barrage," officials said.
The project was first conceived in 1964 and several feasibility studies had been done. But successive governments could not finalise a site for the barrage.
After coming to power,
the present government asked the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) to take over the feasibility study again at Tk 343.5 million and gave three years' timeframe to start the main construction work.
In line with the present government's earnest desire, the BWDB in May, 2009 appointed Development Design Consultants Limited (DDC), an international consortium, for studying the feasibility and detailed engineering aspects of the project.
Director of the Ganges Barrage Project Ahsanul Alam told the news agency that the consulting firm with the overall supervision of the BWDB has primarily selected two sites for construction of the barrage, one at Pangsha of Rajbari district and other at Kumarkhali in Kushtia.
He said about 50 per cent work of the feasibility study has been completed in the first phase. In the second phase, he said, technical plan and design of the scheme will be prepared. By this time the selection of final site will be completed, he added.
The Ganges Barrage has been designed to save the south-west and northern parts of the country from dryness and salinity of the rivers in the region.
It will bring one-third areas of the country under irrigation and save the world heritage site Sundarbans and Bhabadah from salinity, help preserve their bio-diversity and improve overall environment.
The whole riverine system in the south-western and northern parts of the country would get back their navigability once the barrage is constructed, the officials said.
The western part of the country which constitutes 37 per cent of the total area of the country and where country's one-third population live depends on the water of the river Ganges (Padma).