The Ministry of Railways is set to revive a project proposal originally drafted in 2018 to replace the nearly century-old Kalurghat road-cum-rail bridge over the Karnaphuli River in Choattogram - now at nearly ten times the initial estimated cost, according to planning commission officials.
The ministry has submitted a Development Project Proposal (DPP) to the commission, outlining plans for a 700-metre bridge with an estimated cost of Tk11,566 crore, of which Tk4,438 crore will come from the government exchequer and Tk7,128 crore as loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
In 2018, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) returned a Tk1,163 crore project proposal from the railway ministry for constructing a road-cum-rail bridge at the same location, instructing that the rail and road sections be designed separately.
Planning Commission officials have expressed concern over the project's cost increase by Tk10,403 crore within a few years and have asked for justification for the new cost estimation, according to minutes from a recent Project Evaluation Committee (PEC) meeting held to review the proposal.
The meeting, chaired by Dr Mohammad Emdad Ullah Mian, the member secretary of the Physical Infrastructure Division at the Planning Commission, decided to send the proposal back to the Ministry of Railways for revision with a justified cost estimation.
Experts in public transportation and economists also expressed surprise at the new cost estimation, stating that there is no justified reason for the cost of constructing a bridge to increase tenfold in six years.
They termed the proposal as overestimated and suggested that such inflated development projects would make it difficult to make the rail system profitable.
Bangladesh Railways Chief Planning Officer SM Salimullah Bahar justified the new estimates by explaining that the height of the bridge has been increased by about 5 metres in the new proposal, necessitating a longer viaduct.
He also mentioned that the previous proposal was based on the 2015 rate schedule, while the new one follows the updated rate schedule, which has pushed up the estimated costs.
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) Accident Research Institute (ARI) Director Professor Dr Shamsul Hoque expressed scepticism about the justification for a tenfold cost increase due to a 5-metre height increase and an updated rate schedule unless there were major changes.
He voiced concerns that further cost escalations might occur during the project's implementation, ultimately placing financial pressure on the public.
Dr Hoque emphasised that the railway must cover project implementation costs from its income and questioned whether it would be feasible to recover the expenses of constructing such an expensive bridge.
He recommended that the Planning Commission have impartial and competent engineers review the expenditure, beyond the lenders' consultants.
Minutes of the recent (PEC) meeting revealed Bangladesh Railway Director General Sardar Shahadat Ali highlighted the deteriorating condition of the Kalurghat Bridge, which was built in 1931.
He noted that trains currently run over this century-old bridge at a speed of only 10 kilometres per hour.
Ali emphasised that the existing bridge has become dilapidated and unusable, particularly with the construction of the Dohazari to Cox's Bazar railway.
As a result, constructing a new railway bridge is essential to facilitate rail traffic on the Dhaka-Chattogram-Cox's Bazar route.
Responding to queries regarding the tenfold increase in estimated costs, the railway representative at the meeting explained that the initial project was developed with a 7.62-metre navigation clearance.
However, in 2019, the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) raised the required navigation clearance at the Kalurghat point on the Karnaphuli River to 12.2 metres, necessitating a longer viaduct.
Officials from the Economic Relations Department (ERD) said in the meeting that a total loan of $814.90 million will be secured from Korea for the project.
Of this, $724.73 million will come from the Economic Development Co-operation Fund (EDCF) and $90.18 million from the Enterprise Development Property Fund (EDPF).
The concessional EDCF loan, with a 0.01% interest rate, is to be repaid over 40 years with a 15-year grace period but will be limited to Korean contractors and consultants for tender participation.
The EDPF loan, with a 1% annual interest rate, is to be repaid within 30 years with a 10-year grace period and will allow bidders from any country to participate in international tenders.
This is the first time Bangladesh is receiving a loan from Korea's EDPF fund, and Korean representatives are anticipating quick project approval. They aim to finalise the loan agreement by June.
