Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said works on the four-line on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway would complete by June and vehicular movement on the road would start in December.
The progress of the Dhaka-Chittagong four-lane project was satisfactory and over 60% works had been done, the minister said this while visiting an overpass on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway at Paduar Bazar in Comilla yesterday.
He said: “When the four-line will complete, people will be able to go to Chittagong from Dhaka within four to five hours.”
About the ongoing political violence the minister said there were no examples in the world that a political party was killing innocent people of country to assume power.
The minister said: “The destru-ctive activities which the BNP-Jamaat doing is absolute terrorism, nothing else.”
About the visit of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s visit in the country, he said: “I am hope full over the visit. The visit will resolve the pending issues between Bangladesh and India.
In 2006, the BNP-led government initiated the project to make the two-lane Dhaka-Chittagong highway into four-lane as increased traffic movement caused huge tailbacks that led to sufferings of people.
The construction work for upgrading the Dhaka-Chittagong highway started in 2010.
The project cost was fixed at Tk2,382 crore; but two time extensions increased the cost to Tk3,190 crore.
Change of consultants, intervention of the local ruling party leaders in the land filling works, removal of tombs, mosques, temples and educational institutions were some of the reasons behind the delays.
Director of the project Ibne Alam Hasan, Additional Engineer of Roads and Highway Department Junaid Ahmed Shibib, Engineer KM Atikul Haque, Additional Project Director Abdus Sobur and Police Super (highway, eastern region) among others accompanied the minister.