Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujon on Thursday said that the dream Padma Bridge will be opened to the public by 2021.

He said this while paying compensation of Tk 12.70 crore to 44 families affected by the acquisition of land for rail line at Shibchar upazila in Madaripur this afternoon.

He further said that with the opening of the Padma Bridge, the railway line from Dhaka to Bhanga in Faridpur will be launched. Later, if the ongoing work is completed by 2024, the railway line from Dhaka to Jashore will be started, he added.

The Padma Bridge was once a dream, which has now come true through the Sheikh Hasina government. As the railway line from Chattogram to Cox’s Bazar and Khulna to Mongla is being extended, and this railway line will be extended to Payra Port and Kuakata through the Padma Bridge, he added.

Besides, Bangladesh will be known as a developed country in 2041 if rail communication is well established along with road communication, the minister said.

Later, he inspected the overall work on the Jajira side of the Padma Bridge.

Among others, Secretary of the Ministry of Railways Md. Selim Reza, Additional Secretary Pranab Kumar Ghosh, Director General Md. Samsuzzaman and Deputy Commissioner of Shariatpur Kazi Abu Taher accompanied him during his visit.