DHAKA - MYMENSINGH Highway is Most NEGLECTED Highway.

The BUS owners stopped bus operations on 12 routes along the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway demanding repair of the road to make it fit for running the vehicles. A strike by the bus operators spelled indescribable woes for Dhaka-bound commuters from Gazipur and Mymensingh districts on Thursday. Osman Ali, a leader of Mohakhali Bus Terminal Transport Owners' Association, told bdnews24.com that they would keep their vehicles off the road until it is repaired.

Around 300 buses run on the highway to carry about 25,000 passengers daily On Thursday, many passengers had to walk from Boardbazar in Gazipur to Chandona Chourasta as some inter-district buses were running from there. Many students from Gazipur did not attend classes because of the transport problem. Mohakhali Bus Terminal Transport Owners' Association secretary Mohammad Abul Kalam told bdnews24.com that the highway from Gazipur to Mymensingh is unfit for driving. "Recently 15-16 of our buses developed engines problems due to water-logged road. We had to spend Tk 70-75 thousand to repair each of them," he said.

"That's why we stopped operating buses bound for Mymensingh, Jamalpur, Kishoreganj, Netrokona and some northern districts," Kalam said. General secretary of Bangladesh Road Transport Association (Gazipur branch) Kamrul Ahsan Russell said they had submitted a memorandum to the communications minister seeking solutions to the problem, but no steps have been taken yet. Executive engineer of Gazipur Roads and Highways Department Mohammad Fazle Rabbi blamed unplanned establishment of industries and lack of drainage system along the highway for its rundown condition. "Some of the dyeing and washing factories are discharging waste through drains towards the roadside creating water-logging," he said.

The grater Mymensingh region is always treated as ignored area to the Government. No Government take proper step to develop this region. The result is the FOUR day strike running by the BUS Owners of grater Mymensingh locality due to demand for repairing the highway.

New Airport proposed by the Civil Aviation Ministry.

A proposal concerning the issue has already been sent to prime minister Sheikh Hasina, civil aviation secretary Shafique Alam Mehedi told on Monday. "The cell will be formed as soon as the prime minister approves the proposal," he said. Airport Planning & Management

The civil aviation ministry has proposed formation of a cell to speed up the construction of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib International Airport. Ministry officials preferring not to be named said that the civil aviation authorities were thinking of building the new airport close to Dhaka. It will be built on about 6,000 acres according to the sources. The civil aviation has initially selected three sites — two in Madhupur, Tangail and one in Mymensingh's Trishal. The airport will start operations with two runways at the beginning but there will be sufficient space to make a third one.

The budget for this airport, including expenses for constructing an elevated expressway between Dhaka and the airport and a monorail, has been estimated at about Tk 50 billion. If implemented, it will be the biggest project in the country. Mehedi said, "The airport will be constructed on a BOT (Build Operate Transfer) basis. The government will only provide the land." The construction is expected to be completed by 2013, he added.

In his budget speech, finance minister AMA Muhith had said that this new airport would have all the facilities to become the heart of all international fights. Hazrat Shahjalal Airport, launched in 1980 in Kumitola, is a one-runway airport on 1737 acres, but according to a master plan, it was supposed to have two runways. The World's Top 500 Airports

Many unapproved houses have been built around the airport standing in the way of building another runway. There is also considerable risk of running airport operations because of installations around the airport. The government knocked down 12 structures in 2005. Officials close to the authorities also said that hundreds of buildings of Uttara and Nikunja will be enlisted as 'risky' if authorities initiate building the second runway at Shahjalal airport. 

 

There are now three international and five domestic airports in the country. In addition, there are seven short take-off and landing ports.