TDS Desk:

A proposal to extend the Elenga-Rangpur highway project by two years, pushing the deadline to December 2026, will be placed before the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) Monday.

The revised plan also seeks an additional Tk376 crore, with construction expected to wrap up by December 2025, followed by a defect liability period running until the end of 2026.

The SASEC Road Connectivity Project-2, which aims to upgrade the 190.40km Elenga-Hatikumrul-Rangpur highway to four lanes, was originally scheduled to be completed by December 2024. However, delays in land acquisition and the construction of flyovers and roads between Bangabandhu Bridge and Elenga have pushed back the timeline.

The new proposal will also address the ongoing work at Hatikumrul intersection and other key points that have faced setbacks due to land acquisition delays.

The project was first approved by ECNEC in September 2016 with an initial budget of Tk11,899 crore and a completion target of August 2021.

In October 2020, the project underwent its first revision, extending the deadline to December 2024 and increasing the budget to Tk16,662 crore.

A further special revision in December 2023 raised the cost to Tk18,679 crore.

The latest proposal will bring the total to Tk19,056 crore, marking an additional Tk376 crore, of which Tk336 crore had already been approved by the Planning Commission for land acquisition. An extra Tk40 crore has now been requested for further land acquisition, road lighting, and tree plantation in the project area.

The Bangladesh government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are jointly funding the project.

Officials have cited increased land acquisition costs as a key reason for the budget hike. Originally planned for government land, some areas turned out to be privately owned, particularly in Bogura and Gaibandha districts, necessitating additional compensation payments.

“We’ve also requested Tk40 crore more for land acquisition, road lighting, and planting trees along the road dividers,” said project officials. According to the revised proposal sent to ECNEC, the cost increases are attributed to expenses in land acquisition, resettlement, and utility shifting. Other factors include adjustments to the quantity and financing of various components, including reductions in consultancy fees and price adjustments for certain sections of the project, and increased costs for constructing concrete pavement at Hatikumrul Interchange, among other areas. The project’s overall progress currently stands at 77%, with 170 km of the 190km road upgraded to four lanes and 160km expanded to six lanes.

The work between the west side of the Bangabandhu Bridge and Rangpur is 85% complete, though the section from the east side of the bridge to Elenga is significantly delayed.

The revised plan also includes the construction of six flyovers, 11 footbridges, two railway overpasses, 26 small bridges, 180 culverts, 39 underpasses, a 1.5km intersection at Hatikumrul, a road research and training centre, axle load control stations, and an automated traffic monitoring system.

In total, the project will be implemented across 15 packages, requiring the acquisition of approximately 326 hectares of land at a cost of Tk7,284 crore.