Bangladesh News Bangladesh Economy & Development Thread

[Bilal9]

Bangladesh digital infrastructure now boasts Tier-4 data centre with 99.995 percent uptime availability​

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Mehdi Musharraf Bhuiyan

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Bangladesh's digital capability is taking a boost powered by a latest data centre, with a US institute endorsing its design and a Chinese bank bankrolling the scheme.

The new National Data Centre, said to be one of the first 'Uptime certified' Tier-4 Data Centre in the world, is set to become operational at Kaliakoir in Gazipur by June, giving a boost to the nation's digital infrastructure, officials said.

The officials concerned at the ICT Division say that more than 80 percent works of setting up this mega data centre had already been completed.

Around 90 per cent of infrastructural works have also been accomplished.

Once operational, this high-end data centre is likely to generate around Tk 6 billion in revenue, as per the government estimate.

"We are aiming to make this data centre operational by June this year," said Abu Sayeed Chowdhury, Joint Secretary of the ICT Division, who is looking after the scheme.

"US-based Uptime Institute has already approved the design of this Tier IV centre while we are hoping to get their approval for constructed facility by March," he added.

Once in operation, this could be one of the first Tier-IV National Data Centers in Asia and tenth such 'Uptime certified' Tier-4 facility in the world, insiders informed.

Construction of the facility, located in Kaliakor Hi-tech Park off the capital, Dhaka, started in May 2016.
The total cost of this mega-initiative was projected to be Tk 15.56 billion, out of which Tk 11.99 billion came from the Export-Import Bank of China as project assistance while the rest of the funds are spent from government exchequer.

Bangladesh currently has a tier-3 data centre based in Bangladesh Computer Council building in the capital. Officials observe that having a tier-4 data centre will be a major uplift in terms of techno-capacity.
"The downtime of the Tier-4 data centre will come down to zero. While a tier III data centre has 99.982 percent availability, a tier-IV centre will have 99.995 percent availability," Chowdhury said.

"Apart from that, a Tier-4 data centre is able to sustain 96 hours of power outage while a Tier-III centre can sustain 72 hours' power outage at best," he added.

Officials concerned observe that having a tier-4 centre will boost the data capacity of various public agencies as the government has gone through some major digitization processes of its activities in recent years.

"The new data centre can significantly enhance the quality of the e-service of the government," said an ICT Division high official.

"This would also be an important step in enhancing the security of government's digital contents given that cyber-security is a major issue both nationally and internationally," he added.

Tier IV is sometimes referred to as the four 9s. Tier IV data centers have an availability of 99.995% and 0.8 hours of interruption per year compared to 1.6 hours of interruption with a Tier III facility. That is half of the downtime represented by a Tier III data center.

As per present provision, only the government agencies will be able to utilize the facility of this latest data centre. IT-industry leaders, however, observed that private-sector bodies should also be able to use this state-of-the-art facility in the near future.

"If the private-sector companies like banks can use this facility, this would result in better utilization of resources," said Syed Almas Kabir, President of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services, the trade body of the software companies in the country.

 

[Bilal9]

Bangladesh's telecom sector is now the fifth largest in Asia and the Pacific.

The total number of active subscribers has crossed 100 million. 95% of the people in the country have mobile internet. Numerically the telecom market is now enviable for any company in the world. However, we are still lagging behind in terms of quality. Bringing speed, uninterrupted mobile network, and the whole country under it should be the big goal now. Companies need to be forced to increase investment in these areas.

 

[Bilal9]

This is the cell tower coverage for the largest provider, Grameenphone.

 

[Bilal9]

Bangladesh possesses about the same amount of resources at the bottom of its sea areas, than that exists within the land areas of the country.

Many of us understand 'Blue Economy' to mean only fish resources and gas fields of the ocean.

However, the blue economy of our Bay of Bengal is much wider in scope. Most will be surprised to know that about 71% of the natural resources in our waters are under the sea compared to the amount of resources currently available in the country's landmass. Which again is not just fish or oil/gas. If we start extracting these resources as per the rules from today, then it is possible to extract the equivalent of 2.5 billion dollars every year continuously till 2030.

Due to the location of Bangladesh in the delta of the Indian Ocean, the importance of this region can be understood by our two neighboring countries before us. Realizing that mistake, Bangladesh quickly resolved the unresolved maritime dispute with the two countries without any war through the United Nations. We have established exclusive rights over the vast maritime territories acquired and owned by Bangladesh. About 40 trillion cubic feet of gas can be obtained from these blocks.

Seabed resources include: -

1) 485 species of fish.
2) 36 species of shrimp.
3) 3 species of lobster.
4) 20 species of crabs.
5) 337 species of snails.
7) At least 40 trillion cubic feet of gas. (It is thought that one of the largest fuel oil and gas reserves in the world is located within our sea borders).
6) There are 13 places at the bottom of the sea, where sand is more valuable than gold. There are 16 types of mineral sand deposits on the sea floor available within our sea borders.

Precious mineral sand contains a minimum of 1.24 million tons of mineral resources worth Tk 12,000 crore. Even if these are minimized, Bangladesh will not have to look back. A total of 16 types of mineral sand have been found here. Among these, ilmenite, zircon, rutile, masonite, leucoxine, kyanite, monazite can have the potential to achieve economic prosperity of the country. It also contains uranium-thorium, which is more valuable than gold, and contains a mixture of ilmenite, ganate, seleminite, zircon, runtile, and magnetite.

Unfortunately, even in so many years of independence, there has been no visible activity in the government to extract these resources. Although work on the Blue Economy has begun on a very small scale over the past few years, it is not promising. On the other hand, the technical capability of us in extracting all these resources is also questionable. So the sooner we are able to understand the importance of the Blue Economy, the better for us.

Photo: Frigate BNS Bangabandhu patrolling the territory of the gas fields within Bangladesh borders.

 

[Bilal9]

Bicycles Exports of Bangladesh are gaining momentum in the international market.

Bicycles of Bangladesh are running quite fast in the international market. In the last four months, the export income of this sector has increased by 33.11 percent.

Such a picture emerged on Monday (November 2) in the latest information provided by the Export Promotion Bureau-EPB.

According to the company's statistics, in the first four months of the current financial year - from July to October, the export income from bicycles was 42 million dollars. At the same time last year, the income from this emerging sector came to 3 crore 2 lakh dollars. At the time, the revenue target for bicycle exports was set at 31.2 million. As a result, the revenue of this sector is 26.6 percent more than the target.

In the current financial year (2020-21), the target for total export income from bicycles has been set at US 100 million. In the last financial year, the income of this sector was 6 crore 26 lakh dollars.

Meanwhile, the overall picture of exports shows that the total export income of the country in October came to 294 crore 8 lakh dollars. This income is 4.07 percent less than last year.

However, the country's total export earnings have been in positive growth for the last 4 months. July to October; In these four months, the total income from the export of goods came to 1.244 billion; Despite the Corona push, this income has increased by about 1 percent (0.96) compared to last year. Even this went three point eight percent higher than the four-month target.

Meanwhile, the country's ready-made garment industry is once again in negative growth. In October, the export income of the region was 232 crore 36 lakh dollars. In the previous month, this income was 241 crore 34 lakh dollars. In other words, the income of the garment sector has decreased by 6 crore 96 lakh US dollars in October. And compared to October last year, this income is 19 crore 81 lakh dollars less. In October last year, the country's garment sector revenue was 251.96 million dollars.

As in the first four months of the current financial year, the country's ready-made garment sector has also been stuck in negative growth. During this time, the total export income of the region has reached 1045 crore dollars. But in the last financial year, at the same time, the income of this sector was 1056 crore 84 lakh dollars. As a result, this time the income has decreased by 1.2 percent.

 

[Bilal9]

Progress in Rail connectivity in Bangladesh

If we imagine the country as a human body It would not be an exaggeration to compare the railway with its backbone . The most important thing for a country's economic prosperity is infrastructure. And the strongest foundation of this infrastructure is the railways.

Exactly why is the railway so important ?? The current era is one of high speed rail. Some trains have almost attained speeds of air travel. The advantage of railways is to ensure fast and uninterrupted communication. And save time. In addition, the cost of transporting rail goods is low. With more cargo loads, container rail can maintain communication with every corner of the country. Railways have an impact on the market system because the rail supply chain is strong. There is no traffic jam. Land wastage is minimal in railway construction.

But none of the above is true for our country. Although railways are the mainstay of the communication system of our neighboring countries, we are far behind in the rail network despite the introduction of railways in Bangladesh during the British rule.

The main problem of the railways in this country is the unscheduled disasters. This is due to the fact that almost all the railways in our country are single line. So the capacity of this line decreases. If more than one train is running, one train has to wait at one station till clearance is obtained. The result is a waste of time. If one train is late, it affects all other trains. And if a train derails, then the communication is completely disconnected.

Another big problem in Bangladesh is the difference in railways. Broad gauge rail equipment do not run in meter gauge lines. Again the meter gauge train does not run on broad gauge. All in all, there are two major weaknesses in the railway infrastructure across the country. As a result of wasting time, we are not able to fully utilize the capacity of the railways. And it is difficult to use single track passenger train and freight train at the same time. Due to which the most important role of the railways is to carry goods.

What if all the railways in the country were double line? Even then there would have been problems. Inside broad gauge and meter gauge. So what if all the rail networks in the country are double line and simultaneously dual gauge where both meter gauge and broad gauge trains can run?

Yes. That dream may be coming true. With the support of ADB, plans have been taken to upgrade all the railways in the country to double line dual gauge. Initially, the work of feasibility study is being started at a cost of Tk 248 crore. This work will be completed in December 2022.

In the first phase, Bangladesh Railway will build a new double truck dual gauge line. At the same time, 8 important routes will be upgraded to double truck dual gauge. This will increase the quality of service. Travel time will be much reduced.

The tracks that will be upgraded to double line dual gauge are-

1. Abdulpur-Rajshahi
2. Abdulpur - Shantahar - Parbatipur
3. Shantahar- Bogra- Kaunia- Lalmonirhat
4. Bhairab Bazar - Mymensingh
5. Dhaka - Narayanganj - Laksam
6. Jessore - Benapole
.7 East side of Bangabandhu Bridge - Tarakandi - Jamalpur - Dewanganj Bazar.

The brand new track that will be installed is from Shantahar (Bogra) to Amanura (Chapainawabganj). If this route can be completed, the distance and time of Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions will be reduced a lot. It is understood here that most of the work on the railway will be done in the Northern region in the first phase.

Almost the entire 2955.56 km of the country is single line which makes it difficult to run passenger trains and freight trains simultaneously on this route.

Work is underway to upgrade four major railways to double lines in the country so far.

1. Dhaka-Chittagong
2. Dhaka-Tongi-Joydevpur-Ishwardi
3. Dhaka - Narayanganj
4. From Khulna to Darshana.

The next plan is to establish rail connectivity with all major cities of the country and inter-border cities. And if that is done, the railway sector of the country will be able to make a big contribution in regional communication.

Once this project is done, no train will have to wait for another train to go. There will be an impact on economic activity. If the supply chain of the country's products is strong, the difference between the price of a product in one region and the price in another region will decrease.

The work of Dhaka-Chittagong double line is being done with the help of ADB. ADB is also interested in financing other routes.

Apart from this, the southern region will be connected to the first railway through the Dhaka-Payra railway. Rail in this region will actually change the look of the whole region.

 

[Bilal9]

This news goes to show that our exports are not bottom of the barrel type, rather higher echelon brand names mostly, per my experience.
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Germany's Cube teams up with Meghna to make high-end bicycles​

Exports may rise five-fold to $500m in five years​

Sajjadur Rahman

Cube, the biggest bicycle manufacturer in Europe, has teamed up with Meghna Group to produce high-quality cycles in Bangladesh.

In June, the two companies formed a joint venture company named Hana System Ltd with about Tk 100 crore in investments.

Germany's Cube owns 70 percent stake and Meghna 30 percent in the new entity, which is likely to begin exporting from early next year.

“Cube is famous for making high-quality bicycles and the entry of the company into Bangladesh will attract a lot of foreign buyers,” said Mizanur Rahman, chairman of Meghna Group, which manufactures and exports bicycles.

Industry people say with the entry of Cube, Bangladesh's export to the European Union will jump manifold after hovering around $100 million a year for nearly a decade.

High anti-dumping duty, standing at 48.5 percent, imposed by the EU against China and duty-free export benefits have created a bright prospect for Bangladesh to boost the shipment to European countries.

Presently, Bangladesh produces low-end bikes that are sold at $60 to $150 a piece in the export destinations. But the bikes that will be produced at the joint venture company will be sold at a minimum $231 (200 euros), according to Rahman.

In phases, carbon and electric bikes will be produced at the factory and will be priced $1,500 and $1,000 a unit respectively, he said.

Bangladesh has long been trying to diversify its export basket in order to cut the country's overreliance on the apparel sector and the success has been limited largely because of its inability to produce value-added items.

The country shipped goods worth $36.66 billion in 2017-18, of which garment exports accounted for more than 80 percent, data from the Export Promotion Bureau showed.

Bicycle exports fetched nearly $86 million last fiscal year, down from $126 million in 2014-15. The government has set a target to earn $91 million by exporting the item in the current fiscal year.
Bicycle exports will reach $500 million in the next five years, said Rahman.

Meghna Group, the leading bicycle exporter of Bangladesh, sent 400,000 units to the 28-nation bloc last year. Alita and Pran-RFL are the other two exporters. Starting next year, the joint venture plans to ship another 240,000 units per year. Backward linkage industries of bicycle will also grow as the joint venture will buy half of its necessary materials from the local market, Rahman said.

According to the Eurostat, the EU imported more than 6.8 million pieces bicycle in 2017, up 1.32 percent from a year ago. Cambodia was the top supplier sending more than 1.4 million units. Taiwan shipped 1.31 million units, the Philippines 0.83 million units, Bangladesh 0.8 million units and China 0.63 million units.

The EU trade rules allow Bangladesh and Cambodia to export bicycles, parts and accessories to the EU without having to pay 14 percent duty on bicycles and 4.7 percent duty on accessories. The global bicycle market is expected to grow to $35 billion by 2022, up from $30 billion now.

 

[Bilal9]

Coffee production being popularized locally in Bangladesh plains areas - in the Madhupur Forest Reserves North of Dhaka. It is already popular in the hill tracts areas in the country in the Southern portion of the country, as are Bananas, Cashews and Pineapples and other produce.

 

[Isa Khan]

https://www.facebook.com/mofadhaka/posts/876943023046273

 

[Bilal9]

Some recent interior decorator and other projects in Bangladesh,
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Experience Center at a commercial firm in Dhaka, ADA Trading. Work by local atelier Archvista.

LEED certified interior for Bangladesh Finance Fund Limited by ArchVista.

Now for something different, Independence Tower (Swadhinata Stambha) by Marina Tabassum architects. It stands in the hallowed ground of where the call for Independence was made by the Father of our nation Sheikh Mujib on March 7, 1971. There are multiple large and small reflection pools in front and the tower has bright searchlights pointing straight up, This was designed some two decades ago, but took a while to implement because of various design changes.

Plate Glass Cladding Detail

There is a subterranean museum and gallery below the tower which has fountains and a multimedia display.

All images by noted architectural photographer Maruf Raihan, you can see some of his work here,

porkbun.com | domain for sale

 

[Bilal9]

Aga Khan Academy, Bashundhara (latest status)

 

[Bilal9]

Shanto Mariam University of Creative Technology, Uttara Third Phase

 

[Bilal9]

Found the following article, and it is worth reading, about Bangladesh Economic Development Strategy.

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Is it possible for Bangladesh to rise like China?

The economic zone is considered as a model for investment and job creation around the world. The current local laws of a country do not run in this economic zone. Rather there are separate laws for economic zones.

The world's first modern economic zone was built in Clare, Ireland in the 1950s. After that, the economic zones played a major role in the economic rise of Europe and America But the wheel of the next economy has turned and is now leaning towards Asia and Africa.

The economic boom in Asia began with an economic zone on China's southeastern coast more than two decades ago. Inspired by this rise of China, the idea of an economic zone spread to other Asian countries for many benefits, including attracting foreign investment, increasing exports, creating employment, and developing infrastructure.

But not all countries benefited from the economic zone. Many economic zones have failed due to lack of proper planning.

However, even in 1995, the number of economic zones in the world was only about 500. And now the number of economic zones in the world is more than 4300 where about 87 million people have been directly employed.

Among Asian countries, China has the highest number - 1500 economic zones. Due to which China is on its way to becoming the largest economy in the world. The Philippines has the second highest economic zone in Asia with 312. Within our neighboring countries, India has 221 and Sri Lanka has 12. There are 6 EPZs in Bangladesh.

However, Bangladesh plans to create 100 economic zones by 2030 to play an effective role in connecting South Asia and Southeast Asia by exploiting its strategic position.

China's Guangdong province can be a good example for Bangladesh. This province contributes the most to China's economy. Why? Let me explain.

In the 80's, China's economy gained major momentum. At that time, China created their first four economic zones One in Shenzhen, two in Guangdong Province, and two in Shantou, and four in Fujian Province, including the Xiamen Economic Zone. In less than a decade, these four cities became the most developed cities in China. In this way, the total size of China's economic zone has now reached 550,000 square kilometers.

Bangladesh has similarities with Guangdong Province, which contributes the most to China's economy The province is located on the shores of the South China Sea, which is connected to the economies of Hong Kong, Macau, and the Southeast.

Bangladesh's geographical location has made it easier for Bangladesh to connect with the growing economies of South Asia and the economies of Southeast Asia. With the right plan, Bangladesh can be the Guangdong of this region.

Although Bangladesh has successfully achieved the UN prescribed MDG targets, these economic zones will provide the key strength to meet the 16 conditions for achieving the SDGs. If we can succeed in these zones with proper planning, it will not be impossible to get to the stage of Qatar, a developed country, by 2041. However, in order to become a developed country, we have to achieve GDP growth of more than 10% per year by 2041.

Bangladesh used to be a major force in agriculture. But to employ so many people in an agricultural country - economic progress was kind of impossible. At present, the economy of Bangladesh is becoming increasingly dependent on industry. But we want land for setting up industries, the crisis of which is evident in the country. As a result, unplanned industrial development is taking place on agricultural land which is suicidal for us.

Creating economic zones on fallow lands can solve this problem. Already, 40,000 acres of such less-used land have been acquired to become economic zones where investment-friendly connections have been made by ensuring electricity and gas connections. That is why there is a rush of potential companies for foreign investment. The size of the investment of registered companies for investment in the current economic zones has exceeded $16 billion.

Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority was established in 2010 for oversight of economic zones' development. It is estimated that the total export from our economic zones will be about $40 billion yearly and will create direct employment for 10 million people.

In the meantime, Bangladesh has allowed development of 72 new economic zones. Of these, 54 are government-owned, 23 are private, 4 are established for different countries and 1 is under BEPZA.

The largest economic zone in South Asia is at Mirsarai over an area of 30,000 acres. This Industrial City extends from Mirsarai in Chittagong to Sonagazi in Feni district. The second largest economic zone on Maheshkhali Island covers about 24,000 acres of land. Another zone in Payra is on 10,000 acres of land. Zones are being developed all over the country including those in Anwara in Chittagong, Mangla, Teknaf, Kushtia and Narayanganj. One hundred percent of the land in Moulvibazar's Shri-Hatta Economic Zone has been allotted. The work of 6-7 very large economic zones is going on fast and nearing completion. Land acquisition and development of others is in progress.

China has so far acquired one exclusive zone of 2878 acres and India has been allocated about 1400 acres of land. Japan has been given 1000 acres, Singapore 100 acres and Australia 20 acres.

One of the challenges for Bangladesh now is to provide fast utility connectivity, and launching one stop service, so that issues can be resolved quickly and efficiently.

Meanwhile, India, Sri Lanka or Pakistan has not been as successful in developing economic zones as China has. So by analyzing their successes and failures we need to fix our future course of action. We are not proud of the one-step improvement in the "Ease of Doing Business" rankings (we are at the bottom of the 100 rankings), so we have to aim a lot higher.

 

[Bilal9]

 

[Bilal9]

Dhaka Metro Line 6 recent update, including Station construction clips.

 

[Isa Khan]

https://www.facebook.com/madeinrussianfederation/posts/1914813625338984

 

[Isa Khan]

 

[Isa Khan]

Downgrading the project from deep seaport means Payra would not host any mother vessel or very large ships-- but smaller vessels like the ones handled by the Chattogram and Mongla ports​

After five years of effort, the government has given up the idea to build a deep seaport in Payra and decided to build a regular seaport there, says State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury.
Accordingly, the port site has been relocated from its original offshore location by 65 kilometres to an onshore location at the mouth of the Rabnabad channel.
Downgrading the project from deep seaport means Payra would not host any mother vessel or very large ships-- but smaller vessels like the ones handled by the Chattogram and Mongla ports.

By the end of this month or early next month, the government will sign a new contract amounting to Tk5,000 crore with a Belgian company, Jan de Nul, under a direct purchase method for capital dredging and maintenance dredging work.

The government had previously signed a Public Private Partnership (PPP) contract worth Tk11,000 crore with Jan de Nul. But the company was having problems in arranging funds on its own.

With the change in project configuration, the government is now providing the money in a loan from its newly-formed infrastructure development fund to the Payra Port Authority.

"The dredging is vital for this port and our target is to maintain a 10-metre draft throughout the 65km Rabnabad channel," said Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury adding that the dredging will be completed in 14 months.

"We are not building any deep seaport here considering that we are a cyclone-prone country and the southwestern region is most hit by cyclones. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has made the decision," said the state minister.

This will leave Bangladesh with just one deep seaport project in Matarbari near Maheshkhali that has an 18-metre draft – good enough for berthing mother vessels.

"We can use lighterage ships from Matarbari to Chattogram, Payra and Mongla ports," the state minister said.

The Matarbari deep seaport project is now being developed under a Japanese loan side by side with the Matarbari 1200-megawatt coal power project.

By 2022, the partially functioning Payra port will be fully open with a multi-purpose terminal. "The port will reach its breakeven by 2035," he added.

The construction of the Payra port comes with a host of other infrastructure, including a coal terminal, a coal power plant, a railroad, bridges and roads and a township.

Currently, the government has floated a tender to build a six-lane bridge over the River Andharmanik at a cost of Tk400 crore. This one-kilometre bridge will make the port directly accessible by road.

Payra project at a glance

The Payra Sea Port project has 19 components and the originally estimated cost was between $11 billion and $15 billion to be completed in three phases.

The Rabnabad channel is situated in the Meghna estuary at Tentulia River in Patuakhali. It is about 270km from the Chattogram Port and 90km from the Mongla Port. This site was chosen as it has available land along the channel with an average height of two metres above sea level. The land does not get submerged during the monsoon and it is well connected by road and river networks.

According to a techno-feasibility study prepared by the British farm HR Wallingford & Consortium, the Payra port will require 7,000 acres of land. Of that, 6,000 acres will be used for port development, 500 acres for coal terminal and the rest for the resettlement of people affected by the construction of the port.

The study also assessed weather and wind patterns of the region and found it safe for building the deep seaport.

Since 2016, the project saw a series of changes in financial configurations.

At first, in May 2016, the government signed the first $2 billion memorandum of understanding with Jan De Nul for capital dredging and maintenance dredging of the Payra deep seaport. After a year of study in 2017, Jan de Nul signed an agreement on the basis of foreign direct investment (FDI) to carry out a major capital dredging in about 35 nautical miles (65km) of the Rabnabad channel.

Back then, Jan de Nul was assigned to make the channel operational for deep seaport by the end of 2018 and facilitate the entry of vessels up to 14 metres draught and 300 metres in length. Jan de Nul would form a joint venture company with the PPA, and close the financial arrangements between six months and one year to begin the dredging works.

This financial configuration was later changed into a PPP model and eventually, Jan de Nul said it would not be able to arrange the project fund without a government guarantee and the government was unwilling to provide the guarantee.

Other features of Payra port

The original plans to award contracts for housing, education and health facilities for the port and the developing port community have all been delayed.

It was planned in 2016 that a contract would be awarded to build an airport to connect with the capital by 2019 so that Payra could receive passengers for a nearby resort, casino and tourism in the Sundarbans.

The government also wants to build a railway connection as soon as possible from Payra port to Dhaka. This rail connection is considered vital for the successful development of the port as it would make the port operations very efficient. Studies point out that the completion of this rail link will be completed by 2030.

There are plans to build an eco-park, an exclusive tourist zone for foreigners, marine drive, marine park, sea aquarium, international standard stadium, golf course, tennis court, convention centre, hotel-motel zone and resort, shopping mall, picnic spot and other recreational facilities.

It was planned that a one-km long container terminal would be built by the end of 2018 with FDI. This terminal must be able to handle containers that would be transhipped for onward movement by barge up to Dhaka or Mongla or Chattogram or moved by road or railway inland.

Payra is supposed to host an LNG terminal to facilitate the import of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) that would run a gas-fired power plant or fertiliser factory and for national gas supplies.

Why Payra was moved to onshore location

Other than concerns over cyclonic storms in the Southwestern region, there were debates if building the deep seaport in Payra would affect the Chattogram and Mongla ports.

Geopolitical experts say regional geopolitics, interests of influential countries, including India, China and Japan in the region, have also influenced the decision.

A process is also underway for a feasibility study on whether it will be possible to convert the Payra port into a deep seaport in the future.

At present, the government plans to implement the Payra project's 19 components, including an economic zone, readymade garment factory, pharmaceutical industry, cement factories, a coal-fired power plant, a fish processing zone, a fertiliser factory, oil refinery and shipbuilding industry.

Besides, important reports, such as feasibility study for implementing other plans, assessment of social and environmental impacts, purchase plan and purchase proposal formulation, will be prepared with assistance of Buet's Bureau of Research, Testing and Consultation and the Dutch company Royal Haskoning DHV. The formulation of port operation and management plan and strategic tariff plan and feasibility study report for converting the Payra port into a deep seaport will be available in this way.

Payra downgraded to seaport from deep seaport

Downgrading the project from deep seaport means Payra would not host any mother vessel or very large ships-- but smaller vessels like the ones handled by the Chattogram and Mongla ports

www.tbsnews.net

 

[Isa Khan]

The first set of six railcars for Dhaka Metrorail has arrived in the capital.​

The coaches reached the pier near the depot at Diabari on Wednesday, said MAN Siddique, managing director of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited.
The work to unload the coaches from the vessels will begin on Thursday morning, he said.

A barge carrying two metro rail coaches lays anchor at the jetty of Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) at Uttara's Diabari, Apr 22, 2021. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove

Siddique hopes it will be possible to finish setting up the cars at the depot by Friday.

The Kobe-based Japanese company Kawasaki also shipped the second set on Wednesday, he said.

The 24 sets of 144 coaches are expected to arrive in time, the managing director of the government firm said.

Final trials will be held after tests.

A barge carries two train cars for the Metro Rail from the Turag River in Dhaka’s Birulia towards the jetty next to the Diabari Depot on Wednesday, April 21, 2021. The barge, carrying Bangladesh’s first metro transit vehicles, set off from Mongla Port for Dhaka on April 11. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove

The metrorail project work is ongoing day and night adhering to the health rules amid the coronavirus pandemic as the government wants to launch operation on the initial 11.29-kilometre route from Uttara to Agargon in 2021, the year Bangladesh is celebrating 50 years of independence.

Achieving the first target now depends on the trials, said Siddique.

The first set of metro rail coaches is being transported on a barge to the jetty of the Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) in Uttara's Diabari via Kaundia Dhaka's on the Turag River, Apr 22, 2021. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove
The authorities aim to complete the rest 10 kilometres of the route, from Agargaon to Motijheel, by 2023.

The body of the railcars is made of light and durable stainless steel, Kawasaki said earlier in a statement.

The rolling stock is equipped with indoor and outdoor CCTV cameras to check the status of passengers and platforms during one-man operation.

A barge carrying two metro rail coaches is on its way to the jetty of the Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) at Uttara's Diabari, Apr 21, 2021. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove
The installed cameras will not only secure safety for onboard passengers but also for others coming in and leaving the trains and platforms.

Besides these, each car features two large-capacity air-conditioning units enabling a comfortable commute amid high temperature and humidity.

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bdnews24.com

 

[Isa Khan]

Youngone Corporation, which established the first private export processing zone (EPZ) in Bangladesh, will invest $200 million for its sister concern "Tekvision (BD) Limited".

With this investment, the company will produce all kinds of software for industrial digitalisation, data entry and outsourcing, read a press release issued on Wednesday.

Youngone Corporation came up with the announcement at the ground-breaking ceremony of the Korean Export Processing Zone (KEPZ) Hi-Tech Park, the second private hi-tech park in Bangladesh.

There are two other private hi-tech parks in the country – Walton Digi-Tech Industries Limited and City Group's Hi-Tech Park. Of these, Walton Digi-Tech Industries started its commercial activities in Gazipur.

Kihak Sung, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Youngone Corporation and KEPZ, said that while Youngone Corporation is investing massively in MMF project to supply to the country's RMG export sector, they are now ready to make a significant contribution to ICT industries, start-up ventures by providing infrastructure and investment.

The park will be developed in 100 acres of land at Anwara Upazila of Chattogram with a vision to establish a state-of-the-art hi-tech park, which is coming to a reality providing essential support in the form of education, technical training and human resource development.

KEPZ Hi-Tech Park will have a 41-storey IT building, which will house a number of software development facilities. The hi-tech park will enable the company to create a working opportunities for up to 20,000 people when fully implemented, adds the press release.

The ground-breaking ceremony was jointly inaugurated by Zunaid Ahmed Palak, state minister for the ICT Division, and LEE Jang-keun, ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Bangladesh, and Kihak Sung, chairman and CEO of Youngone Corporation and KEPZ.

Speaking on the occasion, Zunaid Ahmed Palak said that the high-tech park will play a significant role in attracting foreign direct investments to Bangladesh in the coming years.

LEE Jang-keun said that Korea is going to open a new chapter of the business relations with Bangladesh by taking off their previous traditional corporations and moving into a new corporation focusing on the high-tech park and the ICT.

Youngone Corporation was the first company to establish a private EPZ in Bangladesh in 1996 under the Bangladesh Private EPZ Act and formed a company in the name of "Korean EPZ (KEPZ) Corporation (BD) Ltd" to promote, develop and manage the export processing zone.

KEPZ has so far completed 40 state-of-the-art green factories with a floor space of over 65,00,000 sft.

Youngone to invest $200m in KEPZ Hi-Tech Park

Youngone Corporation, which established the first private export processing zone (EPZ) in Bangladesh, will invest $200 million for its sister concern "Tekvision (BD) Limited". With this investment, the company will produce all kinds of software for industrial digitalisation, data entry and...

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