Karnafuli estuary at Patenga selected for multi-lane tunnel
Wednesday, 4 January 2012
Pankaj Dastider
CHITTAGONG, January 3: The Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) of the Communications Ministry has selected Karnafuli estuary at Patenga for the Tk. 60-billion project of building a multi-lane tunnel beneath the river Karnafuli.
Secretary of the BBA Khandakar Anwarul Islam, along with the foreign consultants and local stakeholders of the tunnel, visited three probable sites at the Saltgola Crossing near Bangladesh Navy, Port Connecting Road and Karnafuli estuary this afternoon following a co-ordination meeting held this morning at the conference hall of the Chittagong Circuit House, concerned sources said.
Earlier in the morning, the stakeholders and consultants of the projects held threadbare discussions on the feasibility study now being conducted by the China Communication Construction Company Ltd (4C) and Hong Kong based firm ARUP jointly, scheduled to be submitted before June 2012.
BBA secretary Anwarul Islam, Chairman of Chittagong Development Authority Abdus Salam, Business Manager of the 4C Mr Luo Yu, Consultant of the project Engineer Habibur Rahman, Joint Secretary of the BBA, Divisional Commissioner of Chittagong, Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong, Chief Engineers of Chittagong Port Authority, Roads and Highways Departments and the Chittagong City Corporation, Additional Chief Engineers of Bangladesh Railway and Water Development Board, Superintending Engineer of CDA, Deputy Chief Town Planner of CDA, executive engineers of the CCC, CDA, CPA and Bangladesh Railway took part in the discussion held at the Circuit House auditorium.
Sarwar Uddin Ahmed, Deputy Chief Town Planner of Chittagong Development Authority, has said the estuary at Patenga has been selected for construction of the tunnel from three considerations.
He told the FE this afternoon that there was a presentation of the findings of the already completed feasibility study conducted by the Chinese joint venture - 4C and ARUP - at the meeting.
The study included the positive and negative aspects of each of the proposed sites of the proposed tunnel, environment impact assessment and its mitigation plan, resettlement requirements, cost estimation, socio-economic assessment, land acquisition and building compensation and economic and financial evaluation, Engineer Sarwar said.
Following submission of the feasibility report that was assigned to the Chinese firm in March 2011, the government will start the process of mobilising funds from foreign donors to be followed by international tender, he said adding that construction of the Karnafuli Tunnel will take about five years.
"If constructed at the estuary of the river Karnafuli, the tunnel will connect the Outer Ring Road as per CDA Master Plan, the proposed deep sea port at Sonadia Island and reduce the distance between Chittagong and Cox's Bazar," Mr Sarwar said.
"The tunnel will be constructed 150 feet beneath the water of the Karnafuli and it has been designed with multi-lanes in the model of a major tunnel in China," he said.
The length of the tunnel will be three kilometres while the approach roads on both sides of the tunnel will be 1.5 kilometres each, he said.
CHITTAGONG, January 3: The Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) of the Communications Ministry has selected Karnafuli estuary at Patenga for the Tk. 60-billion project of building a multi-lane tunnel beneath the river Karnafuli.
Secretary of the BBA Khandakar Anwarul Islam, along with the foreign consultants and local stakeholders of the tunnel, visited three probable sites at the Saltgola Crossing near Bangladesh Navy, Port Connecting Road and Karnafuli estuary this afternoon following a co-ordination meeting held this morning at the conference hall of the Chittagong Circuit House, concerned sources said.
Earlier in the morning, the stakeholders and consultants of the projects held threadbare discussions on the feasibility study now being conducted by the China Communication Construction Company Ltd (4C) and Hong Kong based firm ARUP jointly, scheduled to be submitted before June 2012.
BBA secretary Anwarul Islam, Chairman of Chittagong Development Authority Abdus Salam, Business Manager of the 4C Mr Luo Yu, Consultant of the project Engineer Habibur Rahman, Joint Secretary of the BBA, Divisional Commissioner of Chittagong, Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong, Chief Engineers of Chittagong Port Authority, Roads and Highways Departments and the Chittagong City Corporation, Additional Chief Engineers of Bangladesh Railway and Water Development Board, Superintending Engineer of CDA, Deputy Chief Town Planner of CDA, executive engineers of the CCC, CDA, CPA and Bangladesh Railway took part in the discussion held at the Circuit House auditorium.
Sarwar Uddin Ahmed, Deputy Chief Town Planner of Chittagong Development Authority, has said the estuary at Patenga has been selected for construction of the tunnel from three considerations.
He told the FE this afternoon that there was a presentation of the findings of the already completed feasibility study conducted by the Chinese joint venture - 4C and ARUP - at the meeting.
The study included the positive and negative aspects of each of the proposed sites of the proposed tunnel, environment impact assessment and its mitigation plan, resettlement requirements, cost estimation, socio-economic assessment, land acquisition and building compensation and economic and financial evaluation, Engineer Sarwar said.
Following submission of the feasibility report that was assigned to the Chinese firm in March 2011, the government will start the process of mobilising funds from foreign donors to be followed by international tender, he said adding that construction of the Karnafuli Tunnel will take about five years.
"If constructed at the estuary of the river Karnafuli, the tunnel will connect the Outer Ring Road as per CDA Master Plan, the proposed deep sea port at Sonadia Island and reduce the distance between Chittagong and Cox's Bazar," Mr Sarwar said.
"The tunnel will be constructed 150 feet beneath the water of the Karnafuli and it has been designed with multi-lanes in the model of a major tunnel in China," he said.
The length of the tunnel will be three kilometres while the approach roads on both sides of the tunnel will be 1.5 kilometres each, he said.