3rd terminal of Dhaka airport to be visible by Dec: CAAB
Construction of the third terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport is progressing in full swing, with officials saying that parts of the much-awaited project will be visible by December this year.
Already 22 percent of the construction work has been completed and it is expected to gain momentum now that Covid-19 transmission in on the wane, informed the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB).
"Construction of the terminal would be completed on time as progress of the work is satisfactory," CAAB Chairman Air Vice-Marshal Mafidur Rahman told UNB.
"The project will be visible within December this year," he said.
The terminal, designed by renowned architect Rohani Baharin, will match the world's most modern airports," said State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mahbub Ali.
Rohani is famous for her work with Changi International Airport's Terminal-3, Wuhan Tianhe Terminal-2, Guangzhou Baiyun New International Airport, Ahmedabad International Airport, New Islamabad International Airport, Can Tho and Phu Quoc international airports.
The state minister said the construction work is moving faster than the draft plan which makes them hopeful that it can be inaugurated before the scheduled time, which is 2023.
During the onslaught of Covid-19, construction work didn't stop for a single day and around 4,000 national and international workers are working on the project.
"Once completed, the world-class terminal can serve twice the number of passengers that Dhaka Airport is handling currently," the minister hoped.
After completion of the project, HSIA will be able to provide service to over two crore passengers every year, said the CAAB chairman.
The Ashkona Hajj Camp will be connected by a tunnel to facilitate pilgrims' direct transfer from the camp to the airport and the metro rail will be connected to this terminal, he added.
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved the project on October 24, 2017. The construction of the terminal was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on December 29 in 2019.
According to project sources, the terminal is being constructed on 542,000 square metre of land and will have a floor space of 230,000 square metre, 115 check-in counters, 64 departure and 64 arrival immigration desks.
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is financing the construction work. Simuji of Japan and Samsung of Korea are jointly implementing the project called Aviation Dhaka Consortium (ADC).