The project of the dredging and bank protection of the Karnaphuli river, undertaken by the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA), will be completed by June this year. This was disclosed by the CPA through a statement by project director Khademul Basher. The much-talked-about project, named ‘Capital dredging and bank protection with jetty facilities in Karnaphuli river’, has been at the centre of a controversy following allegations by ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury, former mayor of Chittagong and president of the Chittagong city committee of the Awami League. A report in connection with this was published in The Independent on March 25.
However, the CPA has provided an explanation and confirmed that the progress of the project is satisfactory. It confirmed that 76 per cent of the project has already been completed.
Khademul Basher, project director of the ‘Capital dredging and bank protection with jetty facilities in Karnaphuli river’ scheme sent a statement to the newspaper regarding the allegations by ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury. He explained that taking into consideration sustainable dredging, the CPA has marked the river bank line following a mathematical model study by the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). Besides, a team of experts was always monitoring reduction of the river bank line of the Karnaphuli. BUET’s representative, Dr MA Matin, mentioned at a meeting chaired by the shipping minister that the effective width of the river would not be reduced during low tide.
He said, “The Capital dredging and bank protection with jetty facilities in Karnaphuli river scheme included 36 lakh cubic feet (CFT) dredging and construction of a 400-metre-long jetty, a 2,615-metre-long embankment and a 10-metre-long walkway. There is no plan to build any hotel in the area. If anybody occupies the land, CPA will take action in this connection.”
-With The Independent input
