Expense for holding JS polls may overrun projected cost by 20pc
Thursday, 25 December 2008
Shakhawat Hossain
The expense for holding the parliamentary election might overrun the projected cost of Tk 2.5 billion by nearly 20 per cent due to record spending on maintenance of law and order, ministry officials said Tuesday.
About 35 per cent of the projected cost in the current fiscal year (July 008-June 2009) has been kept aside for engaging the law enforcing agencies for maintaining law and order during the poll.
The rest of the fund has been allocated in favour of the Election Commission (EC) for procurement of ballot papers and ink, maintenance of polling centres and payment of allowances to officials engaged for conducting the poll.
But the home ministry has already sought Tk 1.29 billion for maintaining law and order, which will push the poll cost at nearly Tk 3.0 billion, said finance ministry officials.
Allocation of Tk 860 million for law enforcing agencies is under process while the remaining amount is expected to be released before the December 29 election, they added.
Some 1.0 million members of the police, Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and Ansar and VDP are expected to be deployed in some 35,000-plus polling centres across the country.
The EC has added 6,000 new polling centres to the existing number of centres in connection with the 9th parliamentary election.
There were about 29,000 polling centres during the 8th parliamentary election held in 2001.
The home ministry will field 15 Ansars, five policemen and three BDR personnel at each of the polling centres. The number of security personnel will go up by at least two at the polling centres, already identified as risky.
The number of such centres is about 2,500, added the official.
Apart from the members of law enforcing agencies, troops have already been deployed across the country to step up security in the run-up to the voting.
Finance ministry officials said this will be the record spending in the country's history as the expenditure for holding parliamentary polls never crossed Tk 1.50 billion.
In the last parliamentary election held in fiscal 2001-02, the EC was allocated a fund of Tk 1.03 billion.
However, the caretaker government has allocated Tk 4.60 billion for the EC in the current fiscal.
But ministry officials are in doubt whether the EC could be able to complete the election in some 471 Upazilas to be held on January 22 within the annual allocation.
Finance ministry officials said additional budgetary fund might be needed for holding the Upazila election, which will be shown in the revised budget.
The expense for holding the parliamentary election might overrun the projected cost of Tk 2.5 billion by nearly 20 per cent due to record spending on maintenance of law and order, ministry officials said Tuesday.
About 35 per cent of the projected cost in the current fiscal year (July 008-June 2009) has been kept aside for engaging the law enforcing agencies for maintaining law and order during the poll.
The rest of the fund has been allocated in favour of the Election Commission (EC) for procurement of ballot papers and ink, maintenance of polling centres and payment of allowances to officials engaged for conducting the poll.
But the home ministry has already sought Tk 1.29 billion for maintaining law and order, which will push the poll cost at nearly Tk 3.0 billion, said finance ministry officials.
Allocation of Tk 860 million for law enforcing agencies is under process while the remaining amount is expected to be released before the December 29 election, they added.
Some 1.0 million members of the police, Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and Ansar and VDP are expected to be deployed in some 35,000-plus polling centres across the country.
The EC has added 6,000 new polling centres to the existing number of centres in connection with the 9th parliamentary election.
There were about 29,000 polling centres during the 8th parliamentary election held in 2001.
The home ministry will field 15 Ansars, five policemen and three BDR personnel at each of the polling centres. The number of security personnel will go up by at least two at the polling centres, already identified as risky.
The number of such centres is about 2,500, added the official.
Apart from the members of law enforcing agencies, troops have already been deployed across the country to step up security in the run-up to the voting.
Finance ministry officials said this will be the record spending in the country's history as the expenditure for holding parliamentary polls never crossed Tk 1.50 billion.
In the last parliamentary election held in fiscal 2001-02, the EC was allocated a fund of Tk 1.03 billion.
However, the caretaker government has allocated Tk 4.60 billion for the EC in the current fiscal.
But ministry officials are in doubt whether the EC could be able to complete the election in some 471 Upazilas to be held on January 22 within the annual allocation.
Finance ministry officials said additional budgetary fund might be needed for holding the Upazila election, which will be shown in the revised budget.