The construction work on the last part of the metro rail corridor was launched this month keeping utility shifting from the 10-kilometre corridor incomplete, sources said.
They said Dhaka Mass Transit Company (DMTC) commenced the work from Agargaon to Motijheel three months after signing a contract with three Japanese firms and a Bangladeshi firm under two packages on August 01.
DMTC started the work on the first phase of the metro rail corridor from Uttara to Agargaon after completing utility shifting in August last year.
It signed a Tk 18.55-billion contract with Takken Corporation, Abdul Monem Ltd and Abenikko JV to construct elevated structure from Agargaon to Karwan Bazar and a Tk 23.32-billion contract with Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Co Ltd to construct elevated structure from Karwan Bazar to Motijheel on April 30.
DMTC officials said contractors for the last two packages - 5 and 6-- already started the work of check-boring to assess soil condition at some points of the corridor.
While carrying out mobilisation work of the packages, they said, utility shifting would be completed.
Eighty per cent work of utility shifting from Agargaon to Motijheel has been completed, officials claimed.
But continuation with the civil work on the entire 20-kilometre metro rail corridor known as Mass Rapid Transit Line-6 (MRT-6) is likely to worsen traffic congestion in the city.
While crossing Uttara 3rd phase to Agargaon, commuters have to wait now for nearly two hours on an average every day.
DMTC Managing Director MAN Siddique said the work on the last two packages started before utility shifting to interface one work with another for launching the construction work on MRT-6 by 2019.
He said DMTC has already prepared an interfacing plan and started the work on it.
DMTC is set to launch the first phase of the MRT-6 from Uttara to Agargaon by 2019 and the rest by 2020.
Official record showed that only 16 per cent of the project has been completed.
The managing director said though the progress rate may not be found encouraging, DMTC has already completed the work on the package-1 under which land for MRT depot was made ready for infrastructure development.
"Now we have started developing necessary infrastructures like MRT workshop and washing plants on the depot land by interfacing the work between package 2 and 3," he told the FE.
Interfacing packages 2 and 3 would make the rail line's access to the depot ready, he added.
According to the monthly progress report, only 17 viaduct piers out of 391 were completed until July. Check-boring and test piling work on the corridor were completed.
