Initiative to Ease Longstanding Traffic Congestion on Dhaka–Sylhet Highway

To address the persistent traffic congestion along the Brahmanbaria section of the Dhaka–Sylhet highway, the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) has recently begun repair work. In the Sarail Bishwaroad area, workers are leveling a damaged portion of the highway by laying bricks in three layers. However, piles of sand and bricks left in the middle of the road have ironically worsened the congestion, causing more public suffering.

Adviser to the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges, Muhammad Faozul Kabir Khan, is expected to visit the area on Tuesday. Locals claim that the sudden repair effort was hastily undertaken ahead of the adviser’s inspection. They fear that once the visit is over, the bricks will be removed again—wasting public funds. The RHD, however, insists that this is part of a permanent repair, not a temporary fix, and that the materials will remain in place.

According to RHD sources in Brahmanbaria and Cumilla, after several news reports highlighted the severe congestion, the government instructed authorities last Saturday to take effective steps within 72 hours. Work began that very afternoon at the Sarail Bishwaroad roundabout, where bricks are being layered across an area measuring 12 meters wide and 185 meters long, extending another 190 meters toward the Sarail Kuttapara field. Around 400,000 machine-made bricks from Dhaka, Cumilla, Munshiganj, and Brahmanbaria are being used.

Officials say Adviser Faozul Kabir Khan will arrive by train in Bhairab and then travel by road to inspect the site, including the damaged sections and the ongoing work.

Local resident Ibrahim Khan Sadat, general secretary of the Brahmanbaria Public Library, expressed frustration:

> “People have suffered for a year, but no one cared. Now, just because an adviser is coming, they’re repairing the road. After he leaves, they’ll dig it up again—what a waste of money. They should show him the real condition of the road instead of this showpiece effort.”

Project manager Shamim Ahmed clarified that the ongoing work covers 600 to 700 meters and is being done by local RHD teams, not the four-lane project unit.

Sources from RHD, the district administration, and the police noted that the 50.58 km stretch from Ashuganj River Port to Akhaura Land Port has been under a four-lane expansion project for eight years. The Tk 5,791 crore project, funded jointly by Bangladesh and India, is being implemented by Indian contractor Afcons Infrastructure Ltd.

After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, work on the project stalled due to funding and contractual disruptions. Indian engineers returned home, and much of their equipment was lost. They resumed work after nearly three months, but progress remained slow. Following appeals from the contractor, the Bangladesh government recently released an additional Tk 163.7 crore to resolve project issues.

When asked why action had been delayed for so long, an RHD official (speaking anonymously) explained:

> “This isn’t just maintenance—it’s a major reconstruction project. We were waiting for official directives. Acting alone could have drawn criticism. Now that we’ve received instructions from the top, we’ve started work as part of a permanent solution.”

A field visit on Saturday evening and Sunday night revealed that while the area was being layered with bricks and sand, the piles left on parts of the road were worsening congestion, especially for vehicles heading from Dhaka to Brahmanbaria.

RHD Sub-Divisional Engineer Rokon Uddin said,

> “We’re laying bricks in three layers as instructed by senior authorities to ease public suffering.”

Meanwhile, Abu Hena Mohammad Tarek Iqbal, additional chief engineer for the Cumilla region, stated,

“This emergency work aims to reduce immediate suffering. The bricks will not be removed; once the layering is completed, the traffi

c flow will improve significantly.”