Politically driven, unimportant, redundant: Projects worth Tk5,067cr being cancelled

In 2019, a project worth Tk2,637 crore was launched to widen and renovate major roads in the upazilas and unions of Dhaka Division.

Despite this ongoing initiative, the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) undertook another project to develop roads in Keraniganj upazila – an area already covered under the scope of the previous project.

With a budget of Tk1,090 crore, the new project allocated nearly half of the funds for land acquisition, with the costs reportedly inflated beyond standard estimates.

An LGED official revealed that the project was taken up under pressure from a powerful minister of the then Awami League government.

This was a common practice during the 15 years of the Awami League regime, as officials of the LGED and the Planning Commission said they were often compelled to undertake less significant projects under pressure from politicians or bureaucrats.

Now the interim government has decided to cancel 10 ongoing projects with a total budget of Tk5,067 crore, citing their politically driven initiation, lack of importance, and redundancy.

Additionally, non-essential schemes of 67 projects from 372 ongoing projects under the same division, initiated during the previous government, have also been proposed for cancellation.

Besides, for better implementation, the projects have been categorised into high, medium, and low priority lists.

The decision was taken during meetings chaired by the Agriculture, Water Resources, and Rural Institutions Division on 31 October and 6 November, according to a senior official from the Planning Commission.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the meeting's decisions and the priority list have already been sent to the planning adviser.

The official added that relevant agencies will be instructed to submit revised project proposals to the commission to finalise the cancellation of projects or schemes. "Once this process is complete, the schemes or projects will be officially cancelled."

After taking office, Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud said that during the Awami League government, many projects or schemes were initiated for personal or group interests.

He mentioned that contractor companies also had an influence on the selection of projects. He emphasised the need to reassess ongoing projects to identify such schemes or components.

The issue of projects being driven by personal or group interests was also highlighted in the draft report of the interim government's White Paper Committee.

Zahid Hussain, the former lead economist at the World Bank's Dhaka Office and a member of the White Paper Committee, said projects contributing to the economy or socio-economic development, such as roads that enable farmers to access markets or children to attend school, should not be cancelled.

However, he said road construction for political figures or union council members at public expense should be eliminated.

Mustafa K Mujeri, executive director of the Institute for Inclusive Finance and Development, said to increase government investment, the review of unnecessary and politically-driven projects must be completed quickly.

"Otherwise, government investment will become even more stagnant. Without government investment, private sector investment will not occur either, which will have a direct impact on employment and economic growth," he said.

10 projects worth Tk5,000 crore

Among the ten projects proposed for cancellation, the Haor Flyover and Infrastructure Development Project with a Tk349 crore budget has seen limited progress, with only one out of 26 project packages completed.

Two packages have been approved, eight have received work orders, and nine are awaiting approval. The project must be re-evaluated for its environmental impact before any further implementation can be considered.

However, project Director Golam Mawla mentioned that the ministry has already inspected it and recommended removing a few problematic schemes while continuing the project.

The Barhatta Upazila Children's Park Construction Project with a Tk26 crore budget and the Dakatia River Bridge in Faridganj project worth Tk107 crore are both recommended for cancellation due to land acquisition issues.

However, Dakatia River Bridge Project Director Ibadat Ali said the bridge connects Gaziganj and Faridganj and is located near a major market. Following the Planning Commission's feedback, the Local Government Division inspected the project and recommended its continuation.

He added that Tk14 crore has already been spent. The contractor was inefficient, halting work for 1.5 years and filing a lawsuit. "Now with a favourable court ruling for LGED, a new tender will soon be issued to complete the project."

Similarly, the Pagla Bridge over the Mohsin River in Sunamganj with a Tk50 crore budget is also under review for a reassessment of its cost-benefit ratio.

The Regional Agricultural Research Center in Meherpur project with a Tk210 crore budget has been recommended for suspension as a similar research centre already exists in Jashore, and the implementation of this project has not yet started.

Besides, the Bangabandhu-Pierre Elliott Trudeau Agricultural Technology Center project with a Tk454.83 crore budget is suggested for cancellation because similar training programmes are already offered under other government initiatives.

The Planning Commission has also proposed the cancellation of the Tk1,903.53 crore Mujib Killa construction, repair, and development project, citing the current lack of relevance and importance of the project in the current context.

However, Md Abdullah Al-Mamun, director (planning and development) at the Department of Disaster. Management, said, "Around Tk450 crore has already been spent on the Mujib Killa project."

He suggested completing ongoing construction work before closure and a letter will be sent to the Planning Commission for further action.

Further, the Sheikh Zahurul Haque Rural Development Academy in Jashore with a Tk198.95 crore budget is proposed for cancellation due to lack of progress.

Two food-related projects, including the Silo Construction Project in Mahadevpur, Naoga (Tk367.52 crore), and the Modern Rice Silo Construction Project (Tk1400 crore) across various locations, have been cancelled due to economic constraints and pressure on foreign reserves.

Commission's review

According to the review report from the Agriculture, Water Resources, and Rural Institutions Division of the Planning Commission, among the 98 ongoing projects of the LGED, 52 projects have been recommended for the cancellation of non-essential schemes.

For instance, the Rural Infrastructure Development Project (Phase II) in Pabna and Bogura must be completed within the designated timeframe by fulfilling existing tenders without issuing new ones, said the commission.

If necessary, a review of the project schemes on-site should be conducted, considering their relevance and importance, to proceed with the most crucial ones.

The report also mentions that for the Nine Bridge Construction Project in Brahmanbaria, works must be completed for the ones where contractors have been assigned, while activities for unassigned packages should be halted until further decisions.

Also, the Rural Infrastructure Development Projects in Kushtia, Gopalganj, and other districts will require prioritisation and timely completion. In districts like Cumilla, Brahmanbaria, and Chandpur, schemes should be reassessed on-site to ensure that only the most important projects are prioritised.

Additionally, seven projects under the Agriculture Ministry, three each under the Water Resources Ministry and the Rural Development and Cooperatives Division, and one each under the Department of Fisheries and the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief have been recommended for re-evaluation, with unnecessary components to be cancelled.

204 projects given high priority

The Planning Commission has prepared a priority list for the 372 projects under the Agriculture, Water Resources, and Rural Institutions Division. However, even some high-priority projects include non-essential schemes that have been proposed for cancellation.

The commission has recommended 204 projects for implementation with high priority, while 112 projects have been classified as medium priority and 55 as low priority.

Officials from the Planning Commission noted that this prioritisation will help focus on the implementation of important projects. At the same time, considering the economic situation, it will be easier to cancel low-priority projects or suspend fund disbursements if necessary.