DHAKA, July 21, 2018 (BSS) – The government has initiated a move to develop the physical infrastructures of Gazipur City Corporation in a bid to address the acute traffic congestion in the city alongside reducing the water logging problem spending around Taka 661 crore.
“The Planning Commission has already considered a draft Development Project Proposal (DPP) sent from the Local Government Division and it is awaiting approval of the ECNEC,” said a senior Planning Commission official.
The official told BSS that the Gazipur City Corporation under the Ministry of LGRD will implement the proposed project with an estimated cost of Taka 660.82 crore.
“Of the total estimated project cost, Taka 528.65 crore will come from the GoB portion while the rest of Taka 132.16 crore from the GCC’s own fund,” said the official adding that the project will be implemented by June 2020.
The main objectives of the project are to address the existing acute traffic congestion in the city through building newer roads and repairing the existing streets.
Besides, new drains will be constructed while the existing ones will be repaired to address the water logging in that city.
Talking to the news agency, another official at the Local Government Division said Gazipur is one of the oldest cities in the country as the Bhawal Zaminders developed this habitat into a town back in the beginning of the 17th century.
Later, after the Liberation, Gazipur City Corporation was founded lately in 2013 with the merger of Gazipur and Tongi Pourashavas and six unions namely Kashimpur, Konabari, Bashan, Kaultia, Gachha and Pubail.
There are a total number of 57 wards in the Gazipur City which are divided into five zones. The total area of Gazipur City is 329.53 square kilometers of which 244.71 square kilometers areas come from the now defunct Gazipur and Tongi pourashavas. The rest 84.82 square kilometers areas come from the six unions.
The official said the newly inducted areas of this City Corporation is lagging behind development activities while most of the roads are not up to the mark and most of those are very narrow. Besides, the roads turn into a sorrow state especially in the rainy season.
As a result, traffic congestion has become a regular phenomenon in the Gazipur City and water logging often occurs due to insufficient drainage system.
Under the present circumstances, the project has been proposed to ensure overall physical infrastructural development of this comparatively new city Corporation.
The main project operations include construction of 18.08 kilometers RCC road, construction of 122.54 kilometers RCC drains, some 224.34 kilometers bituminous carpeting road construction.
The project is also aligned with the goals and objectives of the 7th Five Year Plan.