Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury on Thursday said the government is undertaking initiatives to implement the ‘Comprehensive Management and Restoration of the Teesta River Project’, commonly known as the Teesta Master Plan, with a view to improving the livelihoods and quality of life of the people of the northern region of the country.
Unveiling the national budget for the fiscal year 2026-27 in Parliament, the Finance Minister proposed an allocation of Tk 10, 533 crore for the Ministry of Water Resources in the fiscal year 2026–27.
The obstruction of water flows through upstream dams on the Teesta and the Padma rivers has adversely affected agriculture, irrigation, fisheries and biodiversity within the river basins of these two rivers in Bangladesh, he said
In this context, he said the ‘Padma Barrage (Phase-I)’ project, aimed at bringing about a transformation in the agriculture and fisheries sectors of the south-western region of the country, was approved at the meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC). The project will be implemented between July 2026 and June 2033.
Under the project, a 2.1-kilometre-long main barrage and a hydropower plant will be constructed on the Padma River at Pangsha in Rajbari.
The project will play a significant role in restoring freshwater flows during the dry season through the conservation and regulation of the Padma River water, enhancing agricultural production, maintaining navigability and preserving ecological balance.
Upon implementation, the project will enable the annual storage of 2,900 million cubic metres of water; prevent salinity intrusion in the Padma 113 basin, including the Sundarbans, through the restoration of navigability in five distributaries and tributaries; ensure uninterrupted agricultural production through irrigation of 2.88 million hectares of land; and increase annual production by 20.39 million tonnes of rice and 2.34 million tonnes of fish.
The Finance Minister said the project is expected to directly and indirectly benefit people in 120 upazilas across 19 districts in four divisions, representing approximately 37 percent of the country's population.