Menteri besar Amirudin Shari said the flood mitigation project, managed by the Menteri Besar Selangor (Incorporated) through its subsidiary, Landasan Lumayan Sdn Bhd, was being carried out in stages at a cost of RM700 million.

He said the project covered 12 zones, starting from Mid Valley, Kuala Lumpur, to Port Klang near here.

The deepening and widening of the river will focus mainly on the Taman Sri Muda area, with 30% of the work in this area to be completed by the end of this year.

The area around Kota Kemuning would be the initial operating site.

“This 10km initial phase will involve work to dredge the river up to three metres near the Taman Sri Muda housing area,” Amirudin told reporters after launching the project here.

He said the overall project would benefit 500,000 residents, especially those around flood hotspots like Taman Sri Muda, Bukit Lanchong, Kampung Tengah and Kampung Baru Hicom.

He added that the work would increase the water storage capacity and reduce the risk of floods like the one that took place last year.

Amirudin said the project to widen and deepen Sungai Klang also involved reinforcing the river banks and construction of bunds.

This is one of the high-impact projects identified under the Selangor Maritime Gateway Economic Development Zone (ZPE SMG) initiative that was recently announced as a sustainable development under the First Selangor Plan, he added.