Shawdesh Desk:

A government monitoring agency has expressed doubt about timely completion of the Uttara–Agargaon corridor of the much-hyped metro rail project while the implementing agency claims that they are on right track to open the corridor in time by December this year.

The planning ministry’s Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division in a recent report not only expressed its doubt about the timely inauguration of the 11.7-kilometre elevated rail line but also conveyed dissatisfaction over the poor safety, environmental and traffic management systems at the construction sites.

It urged the implementing authorities to expedite the Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project (metro rail line – 6) works so that it could be inaugurated in time.

The first-of-its-kind project in the country, the elevated rail service would carry 60,000 passengers per hour from both ends.

The estimated project cost is Tk 21,985.07 crore, of which the JICA will provide  Tk 16,594.59 crore as project assistance and the rest will be borne by the Bangladesh government.

Till July this year the project’s land development work in the depot areas was completed while the actual progress of the civil works in the depot areas was 50 per cent and of the construction of the 11.73km viaduct and nine stations between Uttara North and Agargaon was 54 per cent, according to the project office.

Earlier while inaugurating the project construction work on June 26, 2016, prime minister Sheikh Hasina directed the implementing authorities to open the metro rail’s Uttara-Agargaon corridor by December 2019.

The Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited is implementing the 20.1-kilometre Mass Rapid Transit Line – 6 on the Uttara Third Phase–Pallabi–Rokeya Sarani–Khamarbari–Farmgate–Hotel Sonargaon–Shahbagh–TSC–Doyel Chattar–Topkhana Road–Bangladesh Bank route.

DMTCL managing director MAN Siddique told New Age on Thursday that they would open the Uttara–Agargaon corridor by December this year after finishing the civil work.

He, however, hastened to add that as per a previous decision the corridor would not be opened for traffic movement then as there would be no transportation facilities available at Agaragon to take thousands of passengers coming by the metro rail to other areas of the capital.

An IMED team, led by its secretary Abul Mansur Md Faizullah, inspected the metro rail project work on January 20 this year and based on the inspection findings the division on February 4 sent some opinions and recommendations to the Road Transport and Highways Division under the road transport and bridges ministry and the project office.

The inspection report said that the actual progress of the civil works in the depot areas was 22.5 per cent as the depots, control room, training centre and office were under construction till January 20 this year.

‘So it seems not possible to implement all these works by December 2019,’ the report said.

It also viewed that the activities for constructing the viaduct and the nine stations between Uttara and Agargaon had to be expedited as 407 of the 766 pile caps, 156 of the 448 pier shafts, 1,405 of the 4,577 precast viaduct segments and ‘only’ 1,500 metres of the total 11.73km viaduct were constructed till January 20 this year.

The inspection team also found the safety management in the project areas poor as the construction work was being done with heavy vehicles with safety barriers not being at right places in some areas.

It emphasised that safety measures of international standard should be started in the project area on an urgent basis as per the Development Project Proforma submitted for the project.

The team also found the implementation of the environment management plan dissatisfactory as appropriate measures had not been put in place to control sounds and dusts at the project sites.

It suggested proper watering along the Uttara North–Agargaon rail route to reduce the threats against public health due to the dusts caused by the project activities.

The report also suggested setting up spaces for crossing roads at short distances along with the rail corridor as currently the road users were suffering because the project office had set up intersections for crossing roads or taking U-turn at long distances.

The team also noticed that the project authorities did not appoint sufficient manpower to control traffic in the project areas and advised them to take action in this regard.

According to the latest project progress report, till July, 687 pile caps, 344 pier heads, 5.62km viaduct and sub-structure of nine stations were constructed and 3,654 precast viaduct segments installed on the Uttara–Agargaon corridor.

The project authorities on March 13 sent a reply to the IMED and the RTHD, which said that the metro rail project construction work was going on in full swing.

Already a plan has been put to work for ensuring health and safety of the road users involving project officials and workers and two teams are currently monitoring these works, according to the reply.

The project authorities have also added noise controlling devices on the heavy equipment and excavated site trenches for controlling waves resulting from dynamite compaction, the reply said.

They are also using environment-friendly screw pile foundation to control noise and wave pollution.

For maintaining air quality, the project authorities now dump wastes at approved spaces by carrying them carefully, keep soil covered and spray water two to three times at the construction sites.

The project office also said in the reply that they kept open spaces on roads for U-turn and crossing as per the advice of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police while the police also appointed sufficient number of traffic police personnel in the project areas.

RTHD secretary Md Nazrul Islam told New Age on Thursday that the safety measures at the construction sites were not insufficient and till now no problems or incidents had taken place at the sites.

He, however, said, ‘During the construction work of this range there will be some sufferings which we have to accept.’

The metro rail project is being implemented in eight packages, which was scheduled to be opened for traffic in December 2020 as per the project design while on May 29 this year road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader said that the entire project would be opened for public in December 2021.