The majority of the necessary infrastructure has been put in place, and operations at the Nagarbari port, located in Pabna’s Bera upazila on the Jamuna River, have begun in earnest.
This has made it easier, quicker, and less expensive to transport imported goods from Chittagong seaport to the country’s northern, northwest, and southern regions.
One of the nation’s oldest river ports is currently undergoing modernisation, and officials estimate that the project will be finished by June of next year.
Nearly 80 per cent of the port works, including the jetty, sheds and warehouse, have been completed so far, said Md Mohidul Islam, project director and chief engineer of the implementing agency, namely the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA).
Upon the completion of the project, titled ‘Establishment of Port Facility at Nagarbari’, he said there will be mobile harbour cranes and forklifts to swiftly unload cargo.
Due to the lack of facilities at the Nagarbari port, businesses previously required more time and had to spend more to get imported consignments from Chittagong port.
“Previously, we had to unload goods at Nawapara port on the bank of the Bhairab river in Jashore,” said Md Kazal Miah, a representative of Desh Trading Corporation.
The consignment would then be loaded onto trucks and transported to the north from the southwestern district.
Five ships carrying fertilizer had arrived at the port since the RCC jetty in Nagarbari opened, according to Kazal, and three of them had been unloaded last week.
In 2018, the Ministry of Shipping launched the project at a cost of Taka 513.09 crore, targeting to finish the project work by June 2021.
However, a delayed start, slow progress of land acquisition and repeated extensions in the project duration have increased costs to Taka 563.84 crore and pushed the deadline to June 2025.
After the dredging work is completed, the channel to the Nagarbari port will remain navigable year-round, allowing loaded vessels to easily reach the port, said project director Islam.