Unplanned expenditure under the nose of Planning Commission

The road renovated for the Prime Minister has developed potholes within a month. The Planning Commission had requested the Public Works Department to repair the road. It was forced to work, claims the Public Works Department.

The very commission tasked with ensuring the efficient distribution of state resources is now under scrutiny for mismanagement regarding the roadwork at its own headquarters. The road renovation was executed so poorly that within a month, the bitumen is melting under the summer heat and sticking to car tires.

This refers to the main premises and surrounding roads of the Planning Commission in Dhaka's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, where Tk20 lakh was spent on repairs.

On April 6, the first meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting under the current government was scheduled at the Planning Commission . Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was expected to visit the Planning Commission to attend the meeting. In anticipation of his arrival, a massive cleanup and beautification drive began. Carpeting and road marking were carried out across the courtyards and roads spanning nearly 28 square kilometers within the commission. However, the Prime Minister ultimately did not use that pristine road; the meeting was held at the Secretariat instead.

The problem arose as the bitumen on this specially prepared path began to melt during the recent heatwave. Every vehicle entering the Planning Commission now picks up chunks of bitumen on its tires, leaving behind potholes. Since the Prime Minister is no longer expected to visit anytime soon, it appears that no one is particularly concerned about the deteriorating state of the road.

Inquiries revealed that the Public Works Department (PWD) performed the carpeting work at the request of the Planning Ministry. When questioned about the poor condition of the road, the department claimed it wasn't "carpeting" but rather a process called "seal coating." Regardless of the terminology, the fact that the repairs failed within a month indicates substandard workmanship.

Md. Masum Billah, Sub-Divisional Engineer of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar PWD Sub-Division-3, told Agamir Somoy: “We didn’t want to do this work in the first place. The roads actually needed proper carpeting, but since there wasn't enough funding, we said it couldn't be done. However, at the special request of the Planning Ministry, we were forced to hire a contractor to do the work.”

When asked why the bitumen layer is peeling off, he suggested it might be because the new seal coat was applied over an old road. He maintained that no corruption took place during the process. Masum Billah noted that Tk 20 lakh was spent on the seal coating but could not guarantee its durability and insisted that "The road won't completely fall apart."

Regarding the budget requested for these repairs, Md. Golam Mossaddek, Head of the Administration Division (Additional Secretary) of the Planning Ministry, stated that the PWD had originally requested Tk 3 crore for full carpeting. “We couldn't provide that amount. However, despite repeated requests, the way they executed the work was not good. It should have been made durable. Although they claimed they didn't have the funds, this is a form of wastage, but there was nothing we could do,” the Additional Secretary added.

Planning Secretary S.M. Shakir Akhtar said he had repeatedly asked for the roads to be renovated to a high standard. “Despite telling them many times, they didn't do it. This is very unfortunate,” he said.