JS committee for steps against contractor as job left unfinished

Our Correspondent | Published: June 03, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

CHITTAGONG, June 2: Parliamentary Standing Committee for the ministry of shipping (MoS) said today that appropriate actions will be taken against the contractor who had fled leaving the Karnaphuli capital dredging project unfinished.
Expressing grave concern at the half-done project chairman of the committee Major (retd) Rafiqul Islam Bir Uttam said tender documents relating to the project will be examined soon and then actions will be taken if anomalies beyond the contractual terms are found there.
"The party in question will be blacklisted if flaws are found. If the tender documents state that payment should be made after the package deal is completed, then explanations will be sought why payment has been made against partial job. We will then get the money refunded from the party, if needed," he said.
Maj Rafiq was speaking before the media after inspecting the Karnaphuli capital dredging project site Monday morning.
Talukder Abdul Khaleque, Abdul Hai, Habibur Rahman, Ranjit Kumar Roy, Anwarul Azim, Advocate Momtaz Begum - all members of the committee, chairman of Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) Nizam Uddin and members of the CPA board were present at that time.
Malaysian firm Maritime & Dredging Corporation signed the deal with the CPA to dredge silt in the Karnaphuli riverbed that was hampering navigation.
The Malaysian company got the work done by a local firm but the job was left unfinished and allegations were raised that the dredgers have been paid more money against the job partially completed which was violation of the contract signed between the CPA and the Malaysian firm.
"No contractor is greater than the people of this country. Those who have done incomplete job must explain the breach of the terms of the contract. Investigation will start soon in this connection," Maj Rafiq said.
He said a lot of work has been done in the capital dredging area but still work as per contract is yet to be done.
The parliamentary team was later supposed to visit the bay terminal site at Laldiar Char. A terminal for unloading heavy industrial equipment is supposed to be constructed in the area, port sources said.
Earlier on Sunday, the parliamentary standing committee chair said that necessary steps will be taken at the earliest to operate the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) that has been left unused for seven years depriving the port users of the due services. The port users held a meeting on the day with Maj Rafiq and other members at the training complex of the CPA.
The port users alleged that a vested interest group is behind the non-performance of the NCT for the last seven years.
"The persons in the vested interest group and the CPA should be exposed because the port users in general have been deprived of necessary services due from the container terminal that was constructed back in 2007," the port users said.
The port users' team included members from Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Chittagong Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association, Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association, Customs Clearing and Forwarding Agents Association, among others.
The NCT has been constructed at the cost of over Tk 6.0 billion at the New Mooring area of the port.
Maj Rafiq expressed concern at the non-performance of the giant container handling terminal and said papers relating to the tender for operating the terminal by the private operators will be examined to find why the tender procedure was suspended even after inviting quotations two times in the past.
The CPA has been facing severe criticism from the port users, port's private operators, business representatives, exporters, importers, trade body leaders and the media for playing a mysterious role by not handing the NCT over to any private operator or handling the port itself.