Dhaka-Chittagong highway project

The fate of the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway Project still remains uncertain with its tenure being extended for the fourth time now. The reported completion of 65 per cent of the work in more than eight years since the project was conceived, speaks volumes about how little progress has been made in developing the country's number one highway. It is true that getting stuck with a big project should not be looked at too simplistically as there are a combination of many factors and not just the sloth that should be made accountable.

The wisdom in the decision of widening the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway to four lanes, though belated, was indeed praiseworthy. Although it was originally initiated in 2006, the then government could not advance beyond procedural hurdles. The present government in its previous tenure moved things fast initially, announcing the project as one of its five priority ones. However, it took years to finally appoint the contractors, including a Chinese company Sinohydro Corporation that was to do the major part of the job -- expansion of 140 of the 192 km highway. Work began as late as in January 2010 and was scheduled to be completed in 2012. Since then, poor progress of work has been seriously halting the expected project delivery, resulting in repeated time extensions. Needless to say, each extension was accompanied by a hike in costs that currently has escalated to Tk 31.90 billion from the original Tk 23.82 billion. This time, the project authorities have sought extension for one more year -- reportedly, without any increase in costs. The last deadline for completion was December this year.

There were allegations and counter-allegations from both the government as well as the contractors -- mainly the aforementioned foreign company, which allegedly has been delaying the implementation process on various pretexts. The fact that the four lane highway project is still far from a reality betrays a sense of lack of seriousness on the part of the authorities concerned. The 192-kilometre Dhaka-Chittagong Highway is the life line of the country's trade and commerce catering to well over 80 per cent of the country's exports and imports worth US$ 55 billion. As a result of the delay, the idea of speedier movement of cargo along the highway to and from Chittagong port has remained totally ignored. Worse, the highway is at times rendered almost non-functional because of the narrow, vehicle-choked passage that barely allows easy movement of vehicles carrying cargo. So, one may tend to see how much the country has been losing over the years in terms of man-hours, fuel, accidents and damage to products exported or imported. These direct and indirect costs, if added, would reveal that the highway project has already had a heavy toll on the country's economy.

At a time when the government is drumming up the issue of infrastructure development, it is perhaps scary to wait for big projects like this to cause misery before these are expected to be mercifully completed. The opportunity cost is too high. There are many who allege improper planning as one of the key reasons for delay in the highway project. Had things been well thought out and planned at the very start with little or no changes to design or any other aspect of the project, implementation would have been far less complicated, if not totally hassle-free.