The work to install underground cables has been completed in the Hatirjheel area, although subsequent road repairs necessitated by the project are progressing slowly.
According to official sources, both the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) and Dhaka Power Distribution Company Ltd (DPDC) completed their work in September and deposited their required money to the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) to repair the roads as per rule.
Sources said that recently a Rajuk-appointed contractor has started the road repair works but it’s going on at a very slow pace.
The DPDC and PGCB have laid the high voltage underground cables by digging the roads in the area to replace their overhead cables at the Hatirjheel Lake.
The DPDC first completed its part of the work in June, and then the PGCB’s work was completed in September, said the sources in the PGCB. PGCB officials said after the completion of the works, the Rajuk will repair the roads as the area is under its jurisdiction.
During a recent visit to the area, it was found that Rajuk’s appointed contractor started its road repair works at the Mogbazar Red Crescent area. The slow pace of work is prolonging the commuters’ sufferings, as they have to face a huge dust problem while moving through the area.
“Dust and sand are always flying, creating problems in breathing,” said Razib Ahmed, who uses the road every day to go to his workplace.
ABM Badruddoza Khan Sumon, assistant general manager (AGM) of PGCB, informed that his organization completed its work about two months back and removed all equipment from the project area.
The DPDC started the work in March this year to lay underground cables to replace the high voltage overhead transmission lines in Hatirjheel area.
Bikash Dewan, managing director of DPDC said after completion of the project, there would be no overhead cables in Hatirjheel.
He said that the cables were laid underground by digging the roads in the southern part of the Hatirjheel area, while the cables reached Moghbazar through the Rampura Bridge area.
The Hatirjheel lake was artificially created in a vast area of Gulshan, Tejgaon and Rampura as part of the city's beautification and environmental protection plan. But the overhead cables were out of place with the plan.
Removing overhead cables from Hatirjheel is a part of the DPDC’s larger plan to take all its overhead cables underground from different areas in the city’s central, west and southern parts.
The Power Grid Company of Bangladesh is also involved in the works as its high voltage cable will be connected with the DPDC cables to supply power from the Ulan Grid Substation.
Commuters had to experience a massive hazard due to road digging in the southern part of Hatirjheel for the underground power cabling works during the last monsoon. Now the slow pace in the work is creating further suffering to the city commuters who use the Hatirjheel roads to quickly reach from Gulshan or Rampura to Moghbazar. The roads have turned dusty creating an unbearable situation for the commuters.
