Proposal to build 3rd port awaiting cabinet body nod

Jasim Uddin Haroon A proposal to build the country's third seaport in the southern part is awaiting nod from the cabinet body dealing with economic issues, officials said. The government has taken a move to construct the third port at the estuaries of Ramnabad and Andarmanik rivers at Kalapara of Patuakhali district, they said. "We've prepared a summary for the proposed seaport and it will be placed before the cabinet committee on economic affairs immediately," said a senior official at the Ministry of Shipping (MoS). Earlier, the shipping minister at a rally in Patuakhali announced that the government will build the third port in the district shortly. However MoS officials said they, along with technical persons of Chittagong port, have already visited different parts of Patuakhali as part of its pre-feasibility study. The government will appoint consultants to conduct a feasibility study after the cabinet committee's approval, he said. The site of the port will be selected after the feasibility study. The summary of the proposed port said Bangladesh needs a third port considering transit issues with India and other neighbouring countries. It also said the country has two ports on the two ends and a third port in the middle is necessary to improve the socio-economic development of the area. Since it is positioned at the centre of the coast, a seaport here (at Kalapara), would make movement of goods more convenient than through the ports at Chittagong and Mongla, according to the summary of the port. It also said the existing two ports are located on the rivers and the third port should be close to the sea. The summary also said the existing two ports will not be able to cope with the further rise in external trade. Earlier, the lawmaker of Patuakhali-4 (Kalapara) proposed to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to set up a seaport in the area.