MRT-5 Costs Trimmed by Tk 7,000 Crore

The Dhaka-Tongi-Joydebpur railway expansion, initiated in July 2012, has achieved only 35% progress as of October despite a projected completion by June 2027. Over the past 13 months, progress stagnated at 1.5%, with officials citing delays in obtaining no-objection certification from Exim Bank of India, which funds Tk2,821.16 crore of the Tk3,343 crore project.

The Chattogram Port saw a 10.21% year-on-year rise in container handling in the three months till October, managing 8.30 lakh TEUs compared to 7.54 lakh TEUs last year. Of these, 4.50 lakh TEUs were imports, while the rest were destined for export. The surge followed delays caused by political unrest in mid-July, which hindered movement on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway.

Chattogram Port handled 830,582 containers from August to October, marking a 9% increase compared to the previous period. The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) aims to exceed 3.2 million TEUs by the end of the current fiscal year. Average ship waiting time has reduced from 6–8 days to 1 day due to improved port management.

The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) plans to float an open tender to appoint a temporary operator for the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) as its current operator’s contract expires in early January 2024. The CPA chairman, speaking on November 18, highlighted the move towards a participatory and competitive bidding process by proposing amendments to a 2018 directive that had restricted eligibility.