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The beach town of Cox's Bazar has been decked up with banners, festoons and billboards to welcome Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina who will inaugurate the Chattogram-Cox's Bazar rail line today (Saturday).
The newly built rail route features an iconic oyster-shaped rail-station in Cox's Bazar's Jhelongja Chanderpara area. The prime minister will inaugurate the station on Saturday morning.
The premier is scheduled to flag off a train and will travel by it from Cox's Bazar Railway Station to Ramu Railway Station, said UNB.
After the inauguration, the PM is scheduled to address a public rally organised by the upazila Awami League at Moheshkhali's Maratbari in the afternoon.
She will also inaugurate and lay foundation stones for 20 projects worth around Tk 880 billion.
The new railway line connects Cox's Bazar to the rail network, making it easier to travel by train directly from Dhaka to Cox's Bazar via Dohazari and Ramu in Chittagong.
In the future, the Chattogram-Cox's Bazar railway line will be connected with the Matarbari deep sea port.
The 102-km rail route has nine stations at Satkania, Lohagara, Chokoria, Dulahazra, Eidgao, Ramu, Cox's Bazar Sadar, Ukhiya, and Gumdum. These stations have fully computer-based interlocking signal systems and a fully digitalised telecommunications network.
Abul Kalam, a resident of Linkroad in Cox's Bazar, said, "The introduction of the railway will create new opportunities for us. I have heard that it will be cheaper to travel to Dhaka and Chittagong by train than by bus. Besides, jobs will be created for many local people around the railway station."
Monaf Milat, a local businessman, said, "If vegetables, fish and other products from Cox's Bazar can be transported easily and at a low cost to the capital, it will make a big difference to the business here. There are many advantages to transporting goods by train."
Shafiq Ahmed, a tourist from Dhaka, said, "I hope to travel to Cox's Bazar by train next time. I think that more tourists will come to Cox's Bazar once the train starts running. It will also boost the local economy."