Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the runway expansion works of the Cox's Bazar Airport virtually on Sunday.
The government has taken up the initiative to upgrade the airport through extending its runway by reclaiming land from the sea.
Once completed, the new 10,700-foot runway will allow much larger aircraft to take off and land at the airport, paving the way for it to operate international flights.
State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali and Chairman of Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman will be present on the occasion.
CAAB inked the deal on the project with the Chinese joint venture of Changjiang Yichang Waterway Engineering Bureau (CYWEB) and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) on February 9, 2021. The estimated cost of the project is Tk1,568.86 crore.
According to the project documents, the deadline to finish construction is May 10, 2024.
However, a spokesperson of the construction company said they would be rewarded, if they could finish construction before November 14, 2023.
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Under the agreement, the contractor will extend the existing 9,000ft runway by 1,700ft towards the Maheshkhali Channel through coastal land reclamation.
Representatives of the contraction company said CYWEB-CCECC JV had mobilized manpower at the site immediately after the signing of the contract with CAAB.
The detailed design and construction of temporary facilities, including a site office, road network, jetty, and concrete batching plant have been completed.
CAAB officials said the main construction work will begin after the prime minister lays the foundation stone of the project.
“The latest technology will be used to build a spectacular runway by reclaiming coastal land. It will include the installation of an airfield ground lighting system, installation of instrument landing system, construction of a safety wall and a bridge over the Bakkhali River,” officials said.
The project was approved by the government on November 4, 2018.
State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mahbub said that various development projects were underway to turn Cox's Bazar into an international tourist destination. The runway extension project is one of the most crucial of these projects.
