[3] On 14 October 2016, the Bangladesh Prime Minister and Chinese President Xi Jinping laid the foundation stone of the project.

[10] Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping inaugurated the construction site of the Karnaphuli Tunnel on 14 October 2017.

[3][11] On Saturday 28 October 2023, Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the Karnaphuli Tunnel and was made available for traffic from 6 am the next day.

[11] In October 2016, during the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Dhaka, the loan agreement for the construction of the Karnaphuli Tunnel was signed.

According to the agreement, Exim Bank of China provided ৳5913 crore (US$490 million) as a 20-year loan at 2 percent interest rate.