Costs of road division projects balloon

The communications ministry has demanded an additional allocation of Tk 5.25 billion in the Revised Annual Development Programme (RADP) to help road division development projects continue uninterrupted, official said.  

"It is high time to implement road division projects to help increase the pace of development and investment. Implementation work of different projects has been going in full swing at field level," a top communications ministry official claimed.

Presently, concerned officials who are directly involved with implementation road projects at the field level have sent demand for funds from across the country, he added.  

"The activities of the ongoing projects and implementation level will be speeded up, if allocation is made expeditiously according the officials who are directly involved with the project implementation," wrote Communications Minister Obaidul Quader recently in an official letter to Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, FCA, MP requesting disbursement of an additional Tk 5.25 billion, sources said.

The cost of implementation of current projects will go up, duration will lengthen and the projects will lose momentum if the required funds are not provided in line with approved projection, the minister also said in the letter, it has been learnt.  

"The expenditure of almost every project in the ministry balloons and each takes more than allocated time for implementation. This has reached a maximum level," said sources wishing not to be named.

The additional fund, if made available, will push allocation of the ministry during the current fiscal to Tk 31.0 billion against the original allocation of Tk 25.80 billion.

Some 150 projects are being implemented from government funds by road division under the ministry of communications. Of these projects, 16 are of national importance, 26 are about to be completed, 91 important projects including 17 more have been included in annual development programme (ADP) for current fiscal year, according to the ministry data.

A planning official, seeking anonymity said the enhanced amount sought by the communications ministry to improve country's road and infrastructure network might be approved in the RADP. But it is yet to be decided. The revised project proposals against which additional funds have been sought are now under scrutiny,"