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Published : 20 May 2026, 08:13 PM
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has announced that his administration will construct the Teesta Barrage alongside the ongoing Padma Barrage project to secure Bangladesh’s water resources and protect the environment.
Speaking at a rally in Gazipur on Wednesday afternoon, the premier made the policy declaration clear.
"I want to state one thing very clearly before you all today: God willing, the BNP government will undertake the work of both the Padma Barrage and the Teesta Barrage," he said.
Earlier, he inaugurated the foundation stone of the National Disaster Management Research and Training Institute.
The announcement comes on the heels of the government approving the Tk 345 billion Padma Barrage project during the third ECNEC meeting on May 11, marking the first major mega-project cleared since the BNP formed the government.
The Bangladesh Water Development Board is slated to implement the project by Jun 2033.
"Others might talk big or use heated rhetoric, but if anyone has actually worked, delivered, or created a ground reality, it is the BNP," Tarique said highlighting BNP’s activism for ensuring people’s water rights.
Explaining the strategic urgency behind the Padma Barrage, Tarique noted that the cross-border diversion of water by India through upstream barrages has severely depleted dry-season flows into Bangladesh.
Tarique warned that the lack of fresh water pressure is leading to a dangerous environmental crisis in the south.
"Because the water volume is low, seawater is slowly intruding into the southern region. As a result, the increased salinity is destroying the forests in the Sundarbans and causing various animal species to go extinct. We must build the barrage to maintain counter-pressure by storing water," he said.
He also called for the revival of canal-digging programmes across the country, describing them as deeply intertwined with agriculture and rural livelihoods.
"We cannot stop natural disasters. But let today’s event be a pledge to learn how to minimise damage, protect our assets, save ourselves, and help others when a disaster strikes," Tarique urged.
