PM Hasina to inaugurate construction of Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway tomorrow

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the construction work of the long-awaited Dhaka-Ashulia Expressway tomorrow.

The premier will take part in the programme virtually from Ganobhaban at 10am on Saturday (12 November), according to the prime minister's schedule. 

The 24km elevated expressway will connect Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka to the Nabinagar intersection via Abdullahpur-Ashulia-Bypass and Chandra Junction via EPZ.

The proposed Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway project in the Asian Highway Alignment will be linked to the Dhaka Elevated Expressway. The aim of the Ashulia Expressway is to reduce traffic congestion on the Abdullahpur-Ashulia-Bypail-Chandra road connecting 30 districts with Dhaka.

The project will have an 11km ramp. There will be a 14.28km four-lane connecting road on both sides of the flyover.

According to an estimate of the Bridges Division, the elevated expressway will make a 0.2% contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) by facilitating transportation of exporting goods.

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) in 2017 approved the project which was originally scheduled to be completed in June 2022. But, the construction of the Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway has not progressed in the last five years due to the complexity of the loan agreement with China.

The government and Exim Bank of China signed a $1.1 billion loan agreement for the construction of the Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway in October 2021. Though China was initially supposed to bear the entire cost of the project, due to the change in the country's debt policy, it is now providing 85% of the total expenditure.

In June this year, the Ecnec meeting approved the amendment proposal of the project with the time extension to June 2026. Now the project cost has increased by Tk652 crore to Tk17,553 crore.