Army Chief General SM Shafiuddin Ahmed said the Padma Bridge would encourage the country to undertake even bigger projects and development works in the future.

"Padma Bridge is a great achievement for Bangladesh. I personally believe that the Padma Bridge will encourage us to do bigger things in the future," he told the media in immediate reaction after joining the opening ceremony Saturday (25 June) at Mawa.

" I am really proud to be a Bangladeshi today. I think it is a special grace of Allah to see such an achievement," added the army chief.

The two-decade journey of the Padma Bridge dream has become a reality today as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the mega infrastructure.

The Bridges Division has organised nationwide celebrations to commemorate the inauguration of the Padma Bridge, the country's largest infrastructure.

The Bridges Division had proposed to name the long-awaited bridge after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, however, the premier rejected the proposal.

The main event is being held at Mawa and Jajira, both sides of the Padma Bridge.

The Padma Bridge project has been implemented at a cost of Tk30,193.39 crore with almost 100% internal funding.

Starting in 1999 with a pre-feasibility study, construction of the bridge, which has since generated numerous headlines, has had its share of delays and even courted controversy.

The construction of the 6.15 kilometre bridge was supposed to start in 2015, but the cancellation of foreign aid for it and an increasing depth of the river, among other complications, delayed the work.