There is a pressing need for enhancing the Bangladesh Railway's (BR) capacity for both passenger and freight transport, but its continued poor performance, particularly in project implementation, remains deeply frustrating. According to a recent report in this daily, the BR has shelved numerous important projects for years after undertaking initial project implementation preparations and loan negotiations. The closure of the China-funded 200-metre-gauge coach procurement project after nine years is a glaring example. Another major project has been left in limbo after the BR procrastinated for nearly a decade over its implementation, prompting China to withdraw its funding. The BR is looking for new development partners for the project. Similarly, three India-funded projects intended to enhance track capacity have been on halt since last year's July-August political upheaval. Reportedly, these projects have been hamstrung by the wrong selection of funding agencies, a faulty tender process and inefficiency in project preparation by railway officials. Such dismal performance is not only crippling the much-needed expansion of its services, but also hampering day-to-day operations by delaying the supply of locomotives and carriages, as well as installation of tracks on different routes.
While external factors have played a part in the delays, in most cases, project implementation is running aground mainly because of the railway's internal shortcomings. For instance, its tendering processes often face setbacks due to technical flaws in specifications. Recently, tender documents of many projects were brought under review following detection of technical problems in the initial drafts. But the question is, why cannot the specifications be made foolproof in the first place? Is this the result of internal manoeuvring by vested quarters? The practice of floating faulty specifications and then revising them reflects an elaborate saga of bureaucratic inefficiency and corruption, which further slows down progress. Surprisingly, no one is being held accountable for this faulty and erroneous tendering process. So, in many ways, the railway has created its own misery by failing to ensure good governance and accountability. This has allowed such malpractices to persist without consequence.
For a nation striving to modernise its transport infrastructure, such mismanagement of a vital service is totally unacceptable. It is the public who continue to suffer from poor and inadequate services of railway. Moreover, vast sums of taxpayers' money are being squandered by abandoning or shelving projects midway. Earlier, it was reported that BR authorities spent substantial amounts of funds on conducting feasibility studies for projects like bullet trains, electric trains, and circular railways, none of which have been implemented. For instance, Tk 1.0 billion was spent on the feasibility study of a bullet train on the Dhaka-Chittagong route, Tk 250 million on a circular railway around Dhaka, and Tk 3.22 billion on four proposed subways in Dhaka. After spending billions of Taka on those feasibility studies, the projects were shelved. The bungling bureaucracy should be held accountable for this.
Over the years, numerous attempts have been made to modernise the railway, but poor planning, lack of commitment and the greed of those in charge have largely derailed the momentum. It is high time for the government to overhaul the railway and bring some much-needed discipline, transparency and accountability into it.
