Tk 5,651cr haor elevated road project gets nod amid criticism

The government today approved the Tk 5,651 crore project for the 15.31-kilometre elevated road in the haor region of Kishoreganj although experts have been urging the authorities not to take up such a big project at this moment.

The approval came from a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) chaired by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the planning ministry in the city's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area.

The elevated road will be built from Mithamoin upazila headquarters to Karimganj upazila under Kishoreganj district to establish the district's direct road links with Dhaka, Sylhet and other districts for ensuring smooth and uninterrupted all-weather road communication.

The government will spend the money in different stages to implement the project, Planning Secretary Satyajit Karmaker said in a media briefing after the meeting at the planning ministry.

"The project work basically will begin in 2023-24 fiscal year through land acquisition. Only Tk 76 lakh has been allotted in this fiscal."

The money will remain in the country and the land acquisition will surely benefit the general mass, he said.

"We hope the ongoing crisis will not persist for long. It's a temporary crisis."

The Bureau of Research, Testing and Consultation of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology carried out a feasibility study on the proposed elevated road, so it will be harmful for the environment, he said.

Planning Minister MA Mannan also spoke.