The Dohazari-Cox's Bazar Railway project in Bangladesh was put into operation on Nov 11. The project was undertaken by China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group CO.,LTD., as the general contractor, and constructed by China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group Co., Ltd. and China Railway Hi-Tech Industry Co., Ltd. All are subsidiaries of China Railway Group Limited (CREC).
The Dohazari-Cox's Bazar Railway in Bangladesh [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
The railway project is located in southeastern Bangladesh, within the administrative jurisdictions of Chittagong and Cox's Bazar. It is a newly constructed gauntlet track railway. The total length of the project is 103.5 kilometers, and the maximum designed speed is 100 kilometers per hour. It is a construction general contracting project under the FIDIC contract. The first section of the line is 52.5 kilometers, and was implemented by China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group CO.,LTD.
According to surveys conducted by the Department of Environment in Bangladesh and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, about 300 wild Asian elephants inhabit the hilly regions near the Dohazari-Cox's Bazar Railway, with over 100 of them frequently crossing the railway in search of food and water, and during seasonal migration.
Throughout the construction process, the project team collaborated with the Asian Development Bank and Bangladesh's Ministry of Land and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to conduct monitoring and research on the distribution areas, living habits, migration paths and changes of wild Asian elephants in the hilly regions near Chittagong. Based on this research, the team designed specific elephant passages, evaluated structural options, and developed plans for railway anti-collision barriers. The project also established a monitoring and warning system to reduce the mutual impact between wild elephants and trains during railway operations. In addition, to mitigate the environmental impact of construction on the local ecological environment, the project team conducted afforestation along the railway, planting approximately 280,000 trees.
The Dohazari-Cox's Bazar Railway project is a key project under the Belt and Road Initiative and a key route within the Pan-Asian Railway network in Bangladesh. Now that it is operational, it is expected to greatly improve transportation conditions in Bangladesh; promote railway connection between Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar; enhance regional interconnectivity; and contribute to the high-quality development of the Belt and Road cooperation between China and Bangladesh.
(Executive editor: Xie Yunxiao)
