Dhaka-Mawa Trial Train Run Soon

In one or two weeks, a train trial run on the Dhaka-Mawa section of the Padma Rail Link Project is expected, according to Bangladesh Railway authorities on Saturday.

On that specific day, project personnel examined the section of track using a gang car, a sort of rail vehicle.

The Bangladesh Railway, a division of the railway ministry, is building a 169-kilometer rail line between Dhaka and Jashore for the sum of Tk 39,246 crore.

Earlier on April 4, the railway conducted a trial run for the first-ever train on the Bhanga-Mawa rail line through the 6.15-kilometre long Padma Bridge in 16 minutes amid huge enthusiasm and festivity.

On June 10, at a programme, railways minister Nurul Islam Sujan said that they were planning to conduct a trial run for a train on the Dhaka-Mawa section by July or the first week of August.

Railway director general Quamrul Ahsan told New Age on Saturday that on the day the project director and other officials inspected the Dhaka (Gendaria) -Mawa section by a gang car to see the condition of the new line.

‘We are hoping to conduct the first trial run for a train on the section within one or two weeks,’ he said.

He also mentioned that currently on the section different rail vehicles were running carrying construction materials.

New Age correspondent in Munshiganj reported that the gang car started from the Gendaria rail station at about 9:30am on Saturday.

The gang car reached the Mawa point in Munshiganj at about 11:00am.

During the journey, the project officials inspected the track on the section at different points.

Later, the car started for Bhanga station at about 12:30am.

Till May this year, the overall physical progress of the project is 77 per cent and overall financial progress is 72.65 per cent.

The development project proforma of the project was approved by the executive committee of the National On May 3, 2016, the Economic Council approved a project with a price tag of Tk 34,988.8 crore and a completion date of June 30, 2022.

The project cost was once again increased by the ECNEC on May 22, 2018, bringing the total to Tk 39,246.8 crore.

On the same day, the ECNEC also postponed the completion date by two years, to June 2024.

Officials for the Padma Bridge project highlighted concerns about 'black spots' in the rail connection project's design at the Janjira and Mawa entrance ports in September 2020.

The rail connection project fixed the design faults in January 2021.