Staff Correspondent, Narayanganj

In 2017, construction work began on the Dhaka–Narayanganj Double Dual-gauge Railway Line Project  at a cost of Tk 378.66 crore. Since then, the project’s deadline has been extended four times. Finally, on March 15, 2023, the China Power Construction Corporation of China abandoned the project with only 47.5 percent of the work completed.

Despite being a two-year project, after four extensions it has dragged on for almost eight years, with only half of the work finished. There is still no certainty as to when the remaining work will be completed. Construction remains stalled, forcing commuters on the Dhaka–Narayanganj route to suffer severe hardship.

After nearly two years of suspension, Bangladesh Railway appointed a new contractor on April 17 of this year. A Tk 316.64 crore contract was signed with GPT-Standard Joint Venture to complete the unfinished dual-gauge line as well as convert the existing meter-gauge line into a dual-gauge system. The project’s new deadline has been extended to June 2026. However, on-site visits revealed little visible progress so far.

Kamalul Islam, Station Master at Narayanganj Railway Station, said that work on the long-stalled dual-gauge railway line had resumed through a new tender. “Some progress is already visible. The dual-gauge line up to Shyampur has been completed,” he added.

He further said, “Senior railway officials are regularly monitoring the project. Once completed, passenger service quality will improve, suffering will decrease, and traffic congestion in the city will ease. The city will be less crowded with vehicles, and rail connectivity between Narayanganj and other districts will improve.”

Ali Hossain, a security guard at the under-construction new station building in Kalirbazar, said, “The work has been stopped for a long time. I don’t know when it will resume. Earlier, four of us worked here; now I’m the only one left.”

According to railway officials, when the project was first approved in 2017, it included construction of five new station buildings and platforms, one office-cum-station building, 11 bridges and culverts, four foot overbridges, boundary walls, and two wash pits.

The project’s original duration was from June 2017 to June 2019. However, due to delays, it was first extended to June 2020, then to June 2021, and later to December 2022. Even after eight long years, not a single structure has been fully completed. Eventually, on March 15, 2023, the Chinese contractor left the project unfinished with only 47.5 percent progress.

Passengers face severe suffering — drenched during monsoons, scorched in summer heat, and without proper seating or toilet facilities at stations. Although overcrowding inside trains has somewhat eased due to an increase in the number of coaches following the District Commissioner’s initiative, conditions outside remain unchanged.

According to passengers and railway sources, around 30,000 commuters travel daily between Narayanganj and Dhaka. Station infrastructure, safety, and passenger services are in a deplorable state. During monsoon, passengers get wet in the rain; in winter and summer, they suffer from extreme cold and heat. There are no standard toilets, sufficient seating, or separate washrooms for women. Due to poor service, many passengers now prefer to travel by road despite paying several times more in fare.

Hriday Saha, a resident of Golachipa in Narayanganj who commutes daily to Dhaka for work, said, “Travelling by train is full of suffering. Though the number of coaches has increased, outside the trains the problems remain the same. During monsoon we get drenched, and in summer we have to bear unbearable heat. There’s no proper seating or decent toilets.”

Haji Nuruddin, president of the non-political organization Amra Narayanganjbashi (We the People of Narayanganj), said, “Passenger service quality must be ensured. Those who travel on the Dhaka–Narayanganj railway face a lot of trouble. These sufferings must end. Station infrastructure and safety measures must be improved, and the number of trains should be increased.”

Sources say the Narayanganj Railway Station, one of the country’s oldest trade-linked transport hubs, has seen little infrastructural development. Inside and around the station, piles of garbage are common. During monsoon, parts of the railway line remain submerged in water, sometimes even trapping the railway police outpost. Meanwhile, the number of trains has not increased either.