Dhaka Bureau: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated a section of the country’s first metro rail route. Bangladesh entered the modern metro rail system through the inauguration of the Prime Minister on Wednesday (December 28) at 11 am.
Before this, preparations were made for a colorful ceremony on the occasion of the inauguration of the metro rail at Diabari, Uttara of the capital. The Prime Minister inaugurated the Metrorail from there.
At 11 o’clock he came to the opening stage at Diabari playground and announced the opening of the electric train by unveiling the plaque.
After that, Imam Hafez Maulana Mufti Mohammad prayed in front of Baitul Mukarram Jatayi Mosque. Bangabandhu’s daughter Sheikh Rehana, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, Dhaka North Mayor Atiqul Islam, Begum Roshan Ara, President of the Standing Committee on Road Transport and Bridges Ministry, Local Parliament Member Habib Ahsan, Secretary ABM Aminullah Noori, Project Director Aftab were with the Prime Minister on the stage. Uddin and DMCTL MD M A N Siddique.
The Prime Minister will inspect the plaque and plant trees at 1:10 PM. Then at around 2 pm, the official journey of Bangladesh’s first metro train will be auspiciously started by waving the green flag on the platform. At this time, the signature of the Prime Minister will be given on the green flag for preservation as a souvenir. He will then board the train by cutting the ribbon at the door of the reserved coach.
Inside the Metrorail, the Prime Minister will exchange greetings with 200 invited guests taking seats from the east in other coaches. After 10 minutes that is at 2:10 PM, the Prime Minister will get down at Agargaon Metro Rail Station.
Another feather has been added to the development march of the Awami League government, which has been in power for three consecutive terms. Passenger movement will start from Thursday, December 29.
It is one of the most advanced metrorails in the world. This project has been implemented by using the latest technology. This metro rail is capable of running at a maximum speed of 100 km. But it will take 38 minutes to go from Diabari to Motijheel.
Initially standing and single journey tickets or cards are to be purchased from the metro rail station itself, which are not available outside. 10 years permanent card should be bought for 200 taka. This card can be recharged for travel. On the other hand, a Yatra card has to be purchased by paying the fixed fare. It will be left at the time of alighting from the train. Later some companies will be appointed to sell metro rail cards outside the stations.
In the second phase of the project, the section from Agargaon to Motijheel will be commissioned in December 2023 and thereafter the section up to Kamalapur. Metrorail fares are fixed at Tk 5 per km. Minimum fare is Rs.20. Accordingly, the fare from Uttara North Station to Agargaon will be 60 Tk. On the other hand, the maximum fare for a distance of 20 km from Uttara North Station to Kamalapur Station will be Tk 100 per passenger. Initially, the metro rail will be closed once a week on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, mass rapid transit or MRT police will provide security for the metro rail. A special unit of the police is supposed to be formed under this name. But the unit has not yet been formed. MRT police will be formed very soon.
Initially, the Metrorail will stop for 10 minutes at the stations to acclimatize the passengers. After 15 days the situation will be reviewed and further decision will be taken. However, in different countries of the world, the trains allow 2 to 3 minutes for the passengers to leave the station. A similar practice will be introduced in Bangladesh once the people get used to it. 12 sets of trains have been kept ready at Diabari depot to run for the first few days.
According to the DMTCL authorities, initially the metro rail will not stop at any intermediate station. The train will run directly from Diabari to Agargaon. For now it will run for 4 hours every day from 8 am to 12 noon. After that, the train running time will be extended gradually. But DMTCL will review the situation and decide.
DMTCL officials said that there are 9 stations on the 11.73 km route from Uttara to Agargaon. The stations include Uttara North (Diabari), Uttara Centre, Uttara South, Pallabi, Mirpur-11, Mirpur-10, Kazipara, Sheorapara and Agargaon. The start and finish stations will be opened on the opening day. The station can be accessed by elevators, escalators and stairs. The ticket counter is on the second floor of the three storied station building. Three-story platform. Only ticket holders can go to that floor. Each Metrorail train will have six coaches. It can seat 54 people. In total, 306 people can sit in a train. Metrorail project was taken up in 2012. The main work started in 2017. 33 thousand 472 crore rupees are being spent on the implementation of this project. Apart from this, the main work of Metrorail Line-1 will also start this month.
Metrorail at a Glance
1. Uttara to Agargaon section of MRT-6 line of Dhaka’s first metro rail was inaugurated on Wednesday.
2. The length of the entire metro line from Uttara to Kamalapur is 21.16 km, the construction cost is 33 thousand 471 crore 99 lakh taka.
3. Initially 9 stations of Uttara to Agargaon section are being opened for traffic.
4. Train services will start on Thursday (December 29) after the inauguration by the Prime Minister.
5. The fare is Rs 5 per kilometer and the minimum fare is Rs 20.
