State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury MP has said that the construction of Payra port is proceeding with the same goal in mind with which it started. Payra port will handle coal cargo ships as well as other cargo ships. Payra port will become a profitable institution in the future. With the direct patronage of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the country’s third seaport, Payra port, has reached the brink of new possibilities today.
The State Minister spoke as the chief guest at the signing ceremony of an agreement with Bangladesh Navy-controlled Khulna Shipyard Limited to build two tugboats for the Payra port at Hotel InterContinental in Dhaka on Wednesday (19 January).
The State Minister further said that Payra port has changed the socio-economic condition of the region. It will help in bringing about overall social and economic change. Extensive development is already taking place in the southern part of the country around the Payra port. Trade and commerce are expanding. Shipbuilding industries, Sheikh Hasina Cantonment, two universities, and a naval base are being built there. Kuakata has a tourism hub. Payra will be the new hub of electricity. Under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina, the country has witnessed unprecedented development in the last 12 years. We will build the golden Bengal of Bangabandhu’s dream under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina.
The agreement was signed by Commodore Abdullah Al Mamun Chowdhury, Chairman of Payra Port Authority, and Commodore M Shamsul Aziz, Managing Director of Khulna Shipyard Limited.
Khulna Shipyard Limited will build the two tugboats in 18 months. The construction of two tugboats with a 70-tonne bollard pull will cost Tk 135 crores. The length of each of the two tugboats is 37.70 metres, the width is 11 metres, the draft is 5.00 metres and the tonnage is 280 tonnes. Each of the two tugboats will be able to dock a single commercial vessel. In addition, tugboats will be used for a wide range of essential tasks, including search and rescue, assisting commercial ships in fire fighting, retrieving wrecked ships, and assisting pilot transfers in rough seas. This will gradually increase the capacity of the port.
Among others, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Shipping Sultan Abdul Hamid spoke on the occasion.
