Bangladesh, May 14 -- The government has approved a landmark water infrastructure project - the Padma Barrage (1st Phase) - at an estimated cost of Tk 34,497.25 crore, a mega initiative aimed at reversing decades of ecological and agricultural decline in Bangladesh's southwest and northwest regions caused by reduced water flow in the Padma River.

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) cleared the project at its meeting on Wednesday at the Cabinet Division Conference Room in the Bangladesh Secretariat, presided over by ECNEC Chairperson and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Water Resources Minister Md. Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee described the project as one of profound nati...