Highlights:
- Heavy rains damaged 212.94 km of roads in Chattogram
- Total repair cost is estimated at Tk 378.24 crore
- District highways suffered two-thirds of the total damage
- Chattogram South is the worst-affected division with 73.08 km damaged
- Short-term emergency repair work has already begun
- RHD requested funding from the ministry for long-term rehabilitation
Floods have damaged 212.94 kilometres of roads across five districts in the Chattogram region following eight consecutive days of heavy rainfall, with the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) estimating that Tk378.24 crore will be needed for repairs.
The RHD has sought Tk45.87 crore for short-term repairs and Tk332.37 crore for long-term rehabilitation from the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges.
According to an RHD damage assessment, roads across six road divisions: Chattogram, Chattogram South, Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati and Khagrachhari were damaged by the floods.
Of the total damaged roads, 34.09km are national highways, 32.95km are regional highways and 145.91km are district highways.
District highways account for more than two-thirds of the damaged network, making the repair effort particularly important for restoring local connectivity.
The RHD submitted a report titled “Summary of Flood Damage” to its headquarters last week, detailing the extent of the damage and estimating the cost of repairs.
The department has estimated Tk45.87 crore for short-term repairs, which are expected to remain effective for three to five years, and Tk332.37 crore for long-term rehabilitation, designed to last for more than five years.
Md Shahe Arfeen, executive engineer of the RHD’s Chattogram zone, told TBS that proposals for repairing the damaged roads had been sent to the RHD headquarters and would subsequently be forwarded to the ministry.
“Emergency repair work has already started to restore connectivity on important roads after the floodwaters receded,” he said.
He said road divisions were carrying out routine repairs using their own manpower and materials, including bricks, sand and stone.
Chattogram South worst affected
The Chattogram South road division suffered the highest amount of damage, with 73.08km of roads affected.
The division covers Banshkhali, Satkania, Lohagara and Chandanaish, among the areas worst hit by the floods in southern Chattogram.
Of the damaged roads in the division, 10.55km are national highways, 17.48km are regional highways and 45.05km are district highways.
Bandarban recorded the second-highest damage, with 56.63km of roads affected. Of these, 1.70km are national highways, 0.35km are regional highways and 54.58km are district highways.
One culvert and five bridges in Bandarban were also damaged.
In the Chattogram road division, 52.77km of roads were damaged, including 19.50km of national highways, 6.35km of regional highways and 26.92km of district highways.
Cox’s Bazar recorded 15.34km of damaged roads, comprising 0.86km of national highways, 3.44km of regional highways and 11.04km of district highways.
Khagrachhari suffered damage to 11.73km of roads, including 5km of regional highways and 6.73km of district highways.
Rangamati recorded the least damage, with 3.39km of roads affected. Of these, 1.48km are national highways, 0.33km are regional highways and 1.59km are district highways.
Source: https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/infrastructure/tk378cr-needed-repair-213km-flood-damaged-roads-five-ctg-districts-rhd
