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Published : 21 Jul 2017, 09:42 PM
Housing and Public Works Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain while seeing the progress of digging a 100-foot wide canal from Kuril to Purbachal on Friday, said, "The authorities would complete the necessary work at the New Town by December 2018 and issue construction permits."
"Then those who have got plots there will be able to build houses," he added.
The government initiated the Purbachal project on a 6,277-acre piece of land in Naraynganj's Rupganj and Gazipur's Kaliganj in 1996, but it took until 2009 to acquire and develop the land.
The cost for the project was initially estimated at Tk 33.11 billion, which later went up to Tk 77.82 billion.
According to the plan, the New Town will have 60,000 flats and 25,016 plots for houses.
Finance Minister AMA Muhith has also spoken about a 142-storey 'iconic dream tower' at the project site.
Housing Minister Mosharraf said at a programme last year that he hoped the project would end in 2017.
On Friday, the minister said he had given the RAJUK chairman a target to finish the 'lake projects' by 2018.
He said, "A 100-acre piece of land has been kept aside in the New Town for the 'iconic tower' and other high-rises."
"We have given six months to fix the locations and plans of the buildings," he said.
The housing minister said a team of army engineers has been put on the canal project. "We hope it will also be completed by 2018," he said.
"It will be another aesthetically gorgeous area after Hatirjheel in the capital. People will hang out here," he added.
He also said the Kuril-Purbachal canal would help reduce waterlogging in Dhaka.
The nearly 13.5-kilometre canal is being dug along the Purbachal Expressway with pavements, service roads, 13 bridges, four expressway footbridges, and five sluice-gates.
RAJUK Chairman Abdur Rahman and the army's 24th Engineer Brigade Director General Brig Gen Iftekhar Anis were present during the minister's visit.
