BR signs deal with joint venture firm

N-power plant site to come under rail network

FE Report | July 11, 2018 00:00:00

Bangladesh Railway (BR) signed a contract with an Indo-Bangla joint venture firm on Tuesday to extend the rail link to Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP) site from Ishwardi.

This rail link would facilitate smooth and safe transportation of major consignments of the challenging project.

The joint venture firm comprising GPT Infraproject Ltd. of India and Standard Engineering Ltd. (SEL) and Castle Construction Company Ltd. of Bangladesh will develop 26.5-km rail track from Ishwardi bypass to the RNPP site.

The rail line construction work involving Tk 2.97 billion is scheduled to be complete within 18 months.

BR Western Zone general manager Mujibur Rahman and Managing Director of SEL Suvash Chandra Hawlader signed the contract at Rail Bhaban.

Railway Minister Mazibul Hoque witnessed the ceremony chaired by Rail Secretary Mofazzel Hossain.

Director General Amzad Hossain, high officials of the railway and representatives of Bangladeshi firms, including CCCL Managing Director Kazi Nabil Ahmed MP, were also present.

GPT Infraproject Ltd. is the lead firm in the joint venture, but no officials of GPT were present at the signing ceremony.

At the signing ceremony, Railway Minister Mazibul Hoque said the new track will help facilitate smooth transportation of construction materials as well as other consignments to the nuclear power plant project site.

He urged the contractor to complete the rail link project in time and ensure its quality.

Rail Secretary Mofazzel Hossain said the new rail track will facilitate transportation of huge consignments from the Chittagong Port and Mongla Port to the RNPP site during and after the implementation of the RNPP project.

The rail link project would not face any major obstacles during its implementation as the BR owns the land on the entire 26 km corridor where the rail tracks will be installed.

The BR has taken up a Tk 3.35 billion project to develop the missing link between Chittagong port and RNPP site.

Apart from track development and renovation of the corridor under the signed contract, developing a signalling system from Ishwardi bypass to RNPP site is another component of this project.

The BR has rail link from Chittagong port to Ishwardi bypass via the Bangabandhu bridge.

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