RAJSHAHI, Nov 12, 2019 (BSS)- Around seventy-five percent of Rajshahi city areas are expected to be freed from water-logging after implementation of an on-going drain construction project by June next.
Currently, the Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) has been implementing the project titled “Drain Construction for Removing Water-logging in Rajshahi city (Third Phase)” in order to install a planned drainage system through removing its existing constraints.
Salient feature of the project is to improve the physical infrastructural environment through building a time-fitting and sustainable water sewerage system that will contribute a lot towards attaining the cherished goal of boosting working capacity and economic condition of the city.
Executive Engineer and Director of the project Nur Islam told BSS that the project is being implemented as continuation of implementation of the previous first and second phases as per the recommendations of a 27-year drainage master plan.
Under the project Taka 193.29-crore (proposed), construction works of 93.40-km drains including 67.75-km tertiary and 19.29-km secondary ones are on the final stage with the main thrust of freeing the city’s lion-portion areas from water-logging within near future.
Four railway culverts are being expanded besides construction of 8.67-km approach roads in addition to the procurement of two long-boom excavators and two rubber trucks under the project.
Existing problems relating to unfit and narrow sections of the present drains and its low-sewerage capacity will be removed. All the culverts are gradually being widened besides removing the silts from base of the drains to enhance the sewerage capacity under this project.
Engineer Islam said the physical infrastructure development works are being implemented in order to attain the goal of developing the overall environmental health system through building an effective and permanent water sewerage system in the city.
Upon its successful implementation by June, 2020, the project will free the city’s 75 percent areas from water-logging and more than 70 percent population will be benefited either directly or indirectly from the improved physical infrastructures.
Earlier, 54 percent city areas were freed from water-logging and 60 percent of people were benefited with implementation of the two previous phases of the drainage project until July, 2008.
Under the first phase, 32.87-km drains were constructed at a cost of around Taka 23.07 crore while other 16.53-km drains a cost of around Taka 21.59 crore under the second phase belongs to the drainage master plan ranging from 2003 to 2020.
“We have started formulating another long-term master plan to bring the untouched as well as gradually expanding areas under the drainage network in the years to come,” added Nur Islam.