Some Tk 896.21 billion has been invested for railway development over the past decade since a separate ministry for the sector was established in 2012 yet Bangladesh Railways (BR) fails to earn and run on its own largely for what experts say shady spending of funds.
The BR under the Ministry of Railways continues to struggle with revenue shortfalls and even banks on public funds to meet maintenance costs.
Of late, the ministry has submitted a proposal for undertaking a Tk 17.92-billion project to maintain over 1,500 kilometers of railway tracks in the eastern region, about half the country's rail network, said officials of the planning ministry.
The project is to be completed in June 2028, starting from July this year, reveals the project documents.
While BR policy dictates that regular maintenance should be funded through its revenue budget, the planning commission has questioned the ministry's reliance on development funds for such expenses during a recent Project Evaluation Committee (PEC) meeting.
Officials from the railways ministry argue that inadequate revenue allocations had made it impossible to perform necessary maintenance.
The PEC meeting, chaired by Soleiman Khan, Member (Secretary) at that time of the Physical Infrastructure Division at the planning commission, who went on forced retirement recently, concluded with conditional approval for the project, subject to compliance with directives aimed at enhancing efficiency and accountability.
The proposed project aims to address deteriorating railway tracks in the eastern region, ensuring safety and enhancing passenger services. Critical sections covered by the project include the Dhaka-Chattogram, Dhaka-Sylhet, Sylhet-Chattogram, Laksam-Chandpur, Laksam-Noakhali, Dhaka-Mymensingh-Jamalpur routes, which serve as vital transportation links for the region.
Experts and economists attribute the need of funds for maintenance through development projects to unplanned infrastructure growth and BR's recurrent failure to generate sufficient revenue.
Official data from the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) reveal that the railways ministry has spent Tk 896.21 billion since the financial year 2011-12.
Currently the ministry is handling 29 development projects with an estimated cost of Tk 1.39 trillion, which achieved financial progress of Tk 637 billion.
"Strategic planning and accountability are crucial to transforming BR into a self-sufficient and profitable organization," experts emphasized.
The project documents highlighted the deteriorating condition of 1,503.61 kilometers of railway tracks in the eastern region, plagued by worn-out sleepers, rails, and ballast.
Ministry officials note that despite its strategic importance, the region's infrastructure has suffered from insufficient funding, manpower shortages, and outdated systems.
"While new lines have been constructed, much of the existing networks remains in dire need of rehabilitation," says a senior BR official.
The proposed initiative includes replacing damaged sleepers, rails, and fittings, filling ballast deficits, and introducing mechanized maintenance systems. These measures aim to reduce accidents, ensure smoother operations, and improve overall service quality.
The Planning Commission has raised concerns about potential duplication of efforts, as maintenance activities are regularly conducted under the revenue budget.
To address this, directives have been issued to clearly separate project activities from those funded under the revenue budget.
Dr Md Shamsul Hoque, Director of the Accident Research Institute at BUET, has criticized the reliance on development funds for routine maintenance, calling it a symptom of previous projects' failure to deliver promised outcomes.
"Approving large-scale projects without ensuring their effectiveness undermines the sector's financial sustainability," he warns, adding that transparency in fund utilization is imperative for meaningful progress.
Sheikh Sakil Uddin Ahmed, Additional Secretary (Planning) at the Ministry of Railways, told the FE that regular maintenance requires a lower investment but periodic maintenance of rail tracks requires a huge sum of investment.
As the limited allocation fails to meet the demand for regular maintenance, the project has been proposed to conduct periodic maintenance and also for rehabilitation of some decades-old tracks, including in areas adjacent to Sylhet and Mymensingh.
The official further stated that similar old infrastructure exists in the western region of the railway network.
"To address this, a separate project, with comparable funding from the Asian Development Bank, is being planned specifically for the western-railway lines," he said.
Bangladesh Railways (BR) has witnessed a significant decline in its rail-line- maintenance performance over the years, according to the Annual Performance Agreement (APA) of the entity.
In the fiscal year 2018, the BR managed to maintain 2,660 kilometers of railway tracks and the length increased to 3,374 kilometers in 2020, the highest in the past decade.
However, since then, maintenance coverage has consistently declined, reaching just 300.39 kilometers in 2024, with projections of 480 kilometers in the current fiscal year and 490 kilometers in 2026.
The sharp decline in maintenance coverage, particularly from 2024 onwards, is attributed to several factors such as inability to allocate sufficient funds for routine maintenance under its revenue budget and manpower shortages, said officials of the BR.
However, a shift in priorities towards large-scale development projects has overshadowed the upkeep of existing infrastructure, says Dr Shamsul Hoque.
The maintenance budget for the railways is said to have remained stagnant. Bangladesh Railways received a budget worth Tk5.08 billion in the current fiscal year for conducting repairs and maintenance activities of all infrastructures, including rolling stocks, tracks, workshops and hospitals, in the two zones of the railways.
According to the Medium-Term Budget Framework (MTBF) of the Finance Division, the budget for maintenance activities has shown inconsistencies, with allocations failing to meet the growing needs of an ageing railway infrastructure.
The allocation was Tk4.26 billion in the fiscal year 2020-21 and rose to Tk 5.31 billion in the FY-2022, the highest in the last five years.
The amount fell to Tk 4.04 billion in 2023, reflecting inconsistency in funding priorities.
The allocations saw a slight recovery in 2024, rising to Tk 5.01 billion, with a marginal increase projected for 2025 at Tk5.08 billion.
The BR has been maintaining a revenue expenditure that is more than double its revenue earnings for the last several years, incurring substantial operating losses. In the last fiscal year (FY 2023-24), it spent Tk 39.24 billion, which is more than double its earnings of Tk 19.25 billion.
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