Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina at the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting on Tuesday in Dhaka asked the ministries to punish public servants involved with misdeeds and corruption in development work, sources said.
Following the accusation of misappropriation of fund against an engineer of a project under the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB), the PM directed all the ministries and agencies to take necessary actions, Planning Minister MA Mannan said.
Emerging from the meeting of the ECNEC, Mr Mannan told the reporters that when the PM noticed the name of the accused engineer of the project placed before the ECNEC on Tuesday, she asked the authorities to take action against the engineer.
"The state minister and secretary of the water resources ministry failed to reply to the PM. Then the PM ordered all to go for action against corrupt project directors and officials involved in development work," the minister said.
The state minister and the secretary of the water resources ministry assured the PM that they would go for action soon, Mr Mannan told the reporters.
The ECNEC meeting presided over by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday approved 12 development projects worth Tk 34.70 billion.
Planning Minister Mr Mannan said out of the total amount, the government would provide Tk 31.63 billion from the public exchequer while Tk 3.07 billion would come as project assistance from the external resources.
Off the projects, the ECNEC approved the BGD e-Gov CIRT project of the Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC) at Tk 1.46 billion for strengthening the protection capacity of the data centre from any cyber attack.
The ECNEC endorsed the Network Expansion and Tidal Station Modernisation of GNSS CORS at Tk 1.15 billion, Thanchi-Rimakri-Madak-Likri Road Construction Project at Tk 8.53 billion, Construction of Shalla-Jalsukha part of Sunamganj-Madanpur-Dirai-Shalla-Jalsukha-Azmiriganj-Habiganj Road at Tk 7.69 billion, Construction of Permanent Preventive RCC Retaining Wall at Different Parts of the Road Affected by Landslide in Rangamati at Tk 2.49 billion, and Construction of Khulna Tax Building at Tk 710 million.
The ECNEC also approved the Revitalise and Environmental Equilibrium of Nabaganga River through Dredging and Rehabilitation of Madhumati-Nabaganga Sub-project at Tk 3.03 billion, Protection of Charfasion Pauro Town of Bhola District from the Erosion of Meghna River at Tk 2.77 billion, Protection of the Left Embankment of Meghna River from Barikandi to Dharabhanga under Nabinagar Upazila in Brahmanbaria at Tk 710 million, Maximise the Use of Surface Water and Expansion of Irrigation through Preserving Rain Water in Natore at Tk 1.75 billion, Strengthening the Agriculture Marketing Department at Tk 1.60 billion and Adaptation of Coastal People, Especially Women, with the Salinity Caused by Climate Change at Tk 2.76 billion.
The planning minister said the ministries and agencies spent Tk 39.51 billion which is 1.84 per cent of the total Tk 2.02 trillion Annual Development Programme (ADP) in the first month of July.
In the same period of last financial year (FY) 2019, they spent Tk 1.027 billion, 0.57 per cent of the total Tk 1.73 trillion ADP.
Ministers, secretaries and officials concerned were present at the ECNEC meeting.
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