Govt to buy 17 more dredgers
The government is going to purchase 17 more dredgers at a cost of Tk 1,450 crore to restore navigability of the country's river routes, said Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan yesterday.
Meanwhile, three dredgers will start operation under Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) by next month.
"In the long run, our target is to procure 50 dredgers to develop our waterways," he said.
The minister was speaking at a seminar aimed to improve dredging expertise in Bangladesh at a city hotel, organised by IHC Merwede, a Dutch dredger building company.
Shahjahan Khan said the government has chalked out a Tk 11,473 crore project to dredge around 2,393 kilometres of waterways on 53 major river routes to improve and restore navigability.
He said his ministry is also promoting dredger procurement in the private sector.
"A total of 11 dredgers in the private sector have already begun dredging the rivers," he said.
Dutch Ambassador Hennekens, said his government is looking forward to more joint ventures for protecting the rivers and developing the waterways of Bangladesh.
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