Dhaka : The government is thinking of inviting an international tender for ground handling responsiblities of the Third Terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the capital. Those considered eligible following all rules and conditions, will get the ground handling job of the terminal. The move is aimed at providing passengers with better services.
Md Mahbub Ali, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism said this while talking to reporters after inspecting the progress of the Third Terminal of Dhaka Airport on September 12.
Earlier, on August 11, the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh at the 281th meeting of its Board of Directors presided by CAAB Chairman M Mafidur Rahman took the decision to give Dhaka Airport's Third Terminal's ground and cargo handling works through open tender.
Biman Managing Director and CEO Zahid Hossain said Biman only earns 10 per cent of its revenue from ground handling works at the airport currently. So even if they fail to compete for the tender of T3's ground handling responsibility, it will not affect the airline's business much. However, he mentioned, the airline will try its best to prove their eligibility to get the tender.
Around 44.15 per cent work of the Third Terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport has been completed so far, said State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mahbub Ali while speaking to the media after inspecting the progress work of the Third Terminal.
The progress of the work has exceeded expectations, he said, adding that the third terminal can be inaugurated by October 2023..
The State Minister also said that after the completion of the Third Terminal, Shahjalal Airport will be able to serve 22 million passengers annually.
He further said luggage delivery takes much less time than before due to increased monitoring.
"We will ensure that passengers are getting international services that is provided in different airports of the world," Mahbub Ali said.
In response to a question, the state minister said that there has been no compromise on the quality of the work of the third terminal, nor will there be in the future.
Mahbub Ali said that a major revolution is taking place in the country's aviation sector under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Civil Aviation Secretary Mokammel Hossain, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh Chairman Air Vice Marshal Mofidur Rahman, and HSIA Executive Director Group Captain Kamrul Islam, among others were present during the visit.