Bangladesh, Oct. 6 -- Having endorsed a ramped-up cost of two MRT megaprojects, Bangladesh will now have to borrow higher-rated Japanese funds for implementing those much-talked-about metro-rail schemes, officials say.

The government will have to borrow from Japan at a rate of 3.50 per cent for any projects, including the two major Dhaka metro-rail schemes-in a sharp increase in the cost of borrowing compared to the highly concessional terms secured when the projects were initiated in 2019, they said Monday.

Meanwhile, the government, expecting the previous borrowing rate before execution of the new rate of 3.50 per cent from October 1, went for urgent revision of Japan-funded MRT-1 and MRT-5 northern-route projects at the ECNEC meetin...