Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Tuesday instructed the relevant government agencies to provide necessary facilities including power supply and other infrastructure to the citizens of enclaves, now part of the country after the historic exchange.
Hasina also directed to initiate necessary development projects for the improvement of the enclaves, which Bangladesh formally took over on August 01.
The Prime Minister's directives came at the meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) in Dhaka.
After the ECNEC meeting, Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal told journalists that his ministry would follow the PM's directive and take up necessary projects shortly.
He said that steps would be taken to ensure construction of roads, schools and colleges, community clinics in the enclaves while the work for giving power connections would begin in those areas within the next three months.
Mr Kamal said the ECNEC meeting approved nine projects involving Tk 33.68 billion, including one to construct a modern exhibition center at Purbachal to host specialised trade fairs.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was in the chair at the ECNEC meeting.
Mustafa Kamal said of the total project costs for the nine projects, Tk 23.79 billion will come from the government exchequer, Tk 321.3 million from the public organisation's own fund while Tk 9.57 billion as project assistance.
Of the approved nine projects, eight are new while one is a revised project.
Officials said that of the project cost of Bangladesh-China Friendship Exhibition Center project, China would provide the lion's share of the amount Tk 6.25 billion as grant. The government would provide Tk 1.38 billion and the remaining Tk 321.3 billion would come from the state-run Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
The EPB, under the Ministry of Commerce, will implement the project by June 2018 under the turn-key method with Chinese grant.
Some 20 acres of land is now available for constructing the exhibition center at the new satellite town Purbachal in Narayanganj.
The ECNEC meeting approved another project titled procurement of machinery and equipments for the city corporations and pourashavas from Belarus with Tk 4.20 billion.
Local Government Division will implement the project by June 2016 under which machinery and equipments to be procured from Belarus with Tk 3.31 billion project assistance would be used for waste collection, transportation and cleaning, drain construction, maintenance and cleaning, road construction and maintainable in all the country's 11 city corporations and 323 pourashavas.
The other projects approved in the ECNEC meeting are: Augmentation of gas production under fast-track programme at Tk 13 billion, Establishment of Pirganj Textile Engineering College at Tk 1.07 billion, Establishment of Jamalpur Textile Engineering College at Tk 1.11 billion, Nutrition development through production of fruits throughout the year at Tk 1.95 billion, Enhancing irrigation capacity through construction of underground irrigation drains at Tk 1.36 billion, Protection of right embankment of River Padma at Philipnagar, Abeder Ghat and Islampur Areas under Doulatpur upazila of Kushtia district at Tk 835.2 billion and Fisheries development in greater Comilla district at Tk 2.18 billion.
Ministers and State Ministers attended the meeting while Planning Commission members and Secretaries were present at the meeting.
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