Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will formally inaugurate the Padma Barrage project by March next year, Water Resources Minister Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee said on Friday, adding that the project will be implemented with domestic funding.

The minister made the remarks while inspecting a char area of the Padma River at Habaspur in Pangsha upazila of Rajbari in the afternoon.

He said the project had been approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) in 2026 as part of the prime minister’s election manifesto commitment.

The project will benefit people in 24 districts and help increase power generation and fish production while bringing significant changes to agriculture, Anee said.

He described the Padma Barrage as a major project for the country’s economic development and said its implementation would contribute to strengthening the national economy.

Anee said former prime minister Khaleda Zia had conducted a feasibility study for the project in 2004. After a long wait, the Padma Barrage project was approved by ECNEC in 2026 and is now moving towards implementation under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

He also said, “The canal excavation programme initiated by late president Ziaur Rahman has been relaunched. Under the election manifesto, 20,000 kilometres of canals have so far been re-excavated across the country.”

Prime Minister’s Adviser for Finance and Planning Dr Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, Water Resources State Minister Farhad Hossain Azad, State Minister for Cultural Affairs and Rajbari-1 MP Ali Newaz Mahmud Khaiyam and Rajbari-2 MP Md Harun-or-Rashid were present during the visit.