The national budget for the fiscal year (FY) 2014-15 has proposed Taka 6,363 crore for the development of the railways infrastructure in the country.
“We always laid special emphasis on railway communication as it is cheaper, safer and fuel efficient and this will continue in future,” Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith said while placing the national budget in the Jatiya Sangsad on Thursday.
He said the government has taken initiative to upgrade Dhaka-Chittagong corridor to double lines to make railway communication between the two cities more punctual.
In recent times, groups working against the trial of war criminals went on a rampage to destroy this public property acquired with the tax payers money, Muhith said, adding, “We took proper steps to had the damage done so far. The construction and reconstruction of 441-km rail line is under way.”
“Alongside the activities relating to making the railway commercially viable, we have a plan to take the general mass on board and to construct medical college, five star hotel, shopping mall etc to ensure a proper utilization of railway land,” he said.
Besides, the government took up the task of constructing an ICD in the vicinity of Dhirashram.
The total allocation for railway in the budget of FY 2013-2014 was Taka 5,589 crore and Taka 4,900 crore in the FY 2012-2013. Taka 774 crore in the FY2014-2015 has been enhanced.
The minister said that the construction of 2nd Bhairab and 2nd Titas bridges is progressing.
“The feasibility of establishing a container terminal either at Shayestaganj or Srimangal will be assessed by conducting a survey.
In this respect, the prospect of growing trading activities with Tripura and Karimganj will be taken into consideration. We will construct in phases the Dhaka-Mongla and Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar rail lines,” the finance minister said in his budget speech.
