Govt saves Tk185cr at Kamalapur section

Staff Reporter :

The interim government has saved around Tk 185 crore in the electro-mechanical work of the metro rail’s Motijheel-Kamalapur section.

According to a release issued by the Road Transport and Bridges Ministry on Wednesday, the contracting company that submitted the tender in June 2018 for the section’s electro-mechanical system work has recently been awarded the job.

An official said the Revised Development Project Proposal (RDPP) – Second Amendment had allocated Tk 274 crore for this segment, which was approved as part of the project expenditure.

The release stated that the final expenditure was determined through tender evaluation, taking into account factors such as inflation, foreign exchange rates, the complexity of raw material supply, and transportation costs.

It mentioned that the Marubeni-L&T consortium had initially proposed a price of about Tk 650 crore in July 2023. However, the interim government was unwilling to approve such a high expenditure.

Following directives from the interim administration, Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) engaged in detailed negotiations with the contractor. After extensive discussions, both parties agreed on a final cost of Tk 465 crore.

As a result, the government managed to save approximately Tk 185 crore – a clear reflection of its ongoing ‘cost optimization’ policy, the release added.

Earlier, Marubeni-L&T carried out the electro-mechanical works from Uttara North to Motijheel, and the same contractor will now handle system integration for the Motijheel-Kamalapur stretch.

The metro rail construction is being implemented through JICA’s nominated contractor under the financing agreement signed with the development partner.

Meanwhile, the government has also completed the repair works at Kazipara and Mirpur-10 stations at a cost of Tk 18 crore – a significant reduction from the Tk 350 crore estimated by the previous administration.