Govt moves to drop redundant ADP projects

The government will drop redundant and non-functional ADP projects. The government has initiated the move to streamline the implementation of various Annual Development Programme (ADP) schemes and save taxpayers' money, reports UNB.
"With the passage of time, some projects have become redundant and non-functional. We'll drop those from the ADP. Or else, we've to continue with unnecessary burden as we can't deliver on those," said Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal.
Talking to the news agencies at his office, the Planning Minister said some 150 projects, out of 1200, have turned almost non-operational under the ADP. "And of those, there are some projects that saw only 10 per cent of implementation over the years."
Asked whether the fund so far spent on those has gone down the drain, Mr Kamal said perhaps there was a necessity of those projects when those had been approved.
About the process of dropping such non-performing projects, the minister said, "For delisting projects, there's a need for taking approval from the Prime Minister and Ecnec."
He said a proposal to this end will be placed before an ECNEC meeting soon, possibly in the next one or the following one.
On the unusual delay in the implementation process, he said the projects which are continuing over the years are not now being revised. Instead, the officials concerned of those projects have been asked to complete those at their current stage or bring newer components separately, if necessary.
To ensure timely implementation of the development projects through maintaining quality, some changes have been brought in the strategies as meetings are being held with the secretaries of various ministries and divisions to know about the problems and help resolve those and thus speed up implementation.
Besides, the minister said, the Ministries and Divisions have been asked to submit their demands for projects before the Planning Commission within the first quarter so that those could be approved in due time while the Line Ministries get enough time to execute their projects.
Replying to a query, the Planning Minister said the Line Ministries have already been asked not to carry on with those project directors who would intentionally linger their projects implementation.
Mr Kamal said the development projects from now on would not be revised more than thrice. "But if there's any need for more revision, then it has to be intensively studied to ascertain the reasons."
Mr Kamal said there are some critical projects like atomic energy, or coal-fired power plant projects that need some four to six years for completion. On the other hand, there are also some projects which could be completed within three years' time.
Considering the nature and duration of the projects, the Line Ministries have been suggested to work accordingly to complete the development schemes within the stipulated time. Otherwise there would be less chance of project revision.
According to the IMED, the implementation status of the Revised Annual Development Programme (RADP) finally stood at 91 per cent in the just-concluded FY15, including corporations' self-financed projects, mainly because of the three months of political turmoil and non-utilisation of hefty amount in the Padma Bridge project.