A 26.52 km railway line and a new station have been inaugurated from Ishwardi in Pabna to Ishwardi to Ruppur in Pakshi under the three projects of Bangladesh Railways for the transportation of goods and equipment for the Rooppur nuclear power plant project. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina formally inaugurated the railway and station by waving the green flag and blowing the flute through a video conference from Ganabhaban on Thursday afternoon.
Among the three projects financed by the Government of Bangladesh, about 336 crore Tk have been spent on the construction of 26.52 km of railway track up to Ishwardi-Rooppur and a station named 'Rooppur' for the 'Railway renovation and construction project with signaling for Rooppur nuclear power plant'. The work of this project started from April 1, 2018.
Apart from the station, Ishwardi-Rooppur railway line, construction of level crossing, box culvert and installation of computer based color light signaling system have been completed.
According to the Pakshi Divisional Office, the newly constructed station has been named 'Rooppur' station. No passenger train will run through this station.
The station will be used only for transporting goods and equipment for the Rooppur nuclear power plant project. The station is located 1 km from Railway Pakshi Divisional Office and about 2 km from Rooppur Project.
The highest cost project in the country is Rooppur Nuclear Power Project. Railways are joining this project from Thursday. For this reason, the construction and renovation of 26.52 kilometers of railways started. Out of 26.52 km, 9 km of railway line has been newly constructed and remaining 17.52 km of railway line has been converted into dual gauge. The construction of this new railway from Ishwardi Bypass Station take-up point to Rooppur Power Station will start in 2021.
Earlier, the Ministry of Science and Technology proposed a project titled 'Renovation and Construction of Railway Line with Signaling for Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant'. Its construction was started at a cost of 335 crores and 97 lakhs. Through this, it will be possible to start safe, fast and freight train services for the largest power plant in the country. Apart from this, the concerned parties expect that the income of Bangladesh Railway will also increase.
In this regard, the member of the socio-economic infrastructure department of the Planning Commission responsible for the project.
Kamal Uddin Ahmed summarized the meeting of ECNEC and said at that time that if it is possible to start the freight train service with the establishment of rail communication with Rooppur nuclear power plant through the project, it will help in safe and fast transportation of equipment and goods of this power plant.
The Ministry of Science and Technology said about the rationale for taking up the project, the Rooppur nuclear power plant construction project is a priority project of the Bangladesh government. Which is directly observed by the Prime Minister. It was earlier decided that heavy machinery and other goods would be transported through railways for smooth implementation of the project. Based on the demand of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Railways directed Bangladesh Railways to provide rail connectivity to Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant. In view of that directive, Bangladesh Railways has worked to assist in setting up the overall transport management system of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant. The project is of special importance as it is related to Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
It is known from the railway sources that 'pilot' trains used to run without money on the railway line built during the British rule from Ishwardi to Pakshi at a distance of seven kilometers. Pakshi divisional office officials used to travel in that train.
The pilot train was stopped around the year 80 when the road was developed. After a long delay, the abandoned railway lines have been removed and new railways and stations have been constructed with modern technology. Along with this construction work, Ishwardi Junction station renovation and loop line construction work has also been done. The construction of this project has been completed in partnership (joint venture) between India's GPT and Bangladesh's SEL and CCCL.
Railway Pakshi Divisional Office Engineer-2 Birbal Mondal said that under the project, 26.52 km railway line has been constructed. Apart from this, one B class railway station, 13 level crossings, construction of 7 box culverts and installation of computer based color light signaling system for connection with Rooppur nuclear power plant have been done. He said that about 336 crore rupees have been spent on the implementation of this project.
Pakshi Divisional Office Manager (DRM) Shah Sufi Noor Mohammad said that no passenger train will run through this station. The station will be used only for transporting goods and equipment for the Rooppur nuclear power plant project.
According to sources, the total cost of implementing the Rooppur nuclear power plant project has been estimated at 1 lakh 13 thousand 92 crores. The two units of Rooppur Nuclear Power Project will produce 2400 MW of total power of 1200 MW. The first unit is scheduled to start production in 2024 and the second unit in 2025.