Kaladan News

Dated: Tuesday, December 23, 2003

Burma-Bangladesh Friendship Road Starts this Winter

Chittagong, Dec. 23: Burma-Bangladesh Friendship Road will be started in coming winter for direct road link between Rangoon and Dhaka, Bangladesh Communications Minister Nazmul Huda said yesterday, according to UNB, a local news agency of Bangladesh.

A meeting at communications ministry yesterday reviewed development of the 34-km Ramu-Balukhali road at Bangladesh side and 25-km Taungbro-Bolibazar road in Burma part, officials said.

The meeting also discussed construction of two bridges and two kms of new road for the project, they added.

A report on the construction site of a proposed bridge near Taungbro border in Burma was handed over to the communications minister at the meeting, sources said.

The proposed 91-km cross-border highway would be built from Ramu of Chittagong to Buthidaung in Arakan State at an estimated cost of about Tk 400 crore, sources added.

Among other Bangladesh authorities, Syed Rezaul Hayat, communications secretary, and Sheikh Rabiul Islam, chief engineer of Roads and Highways Department, were present at the meeting.