Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has criticised the country’s mega projects, including the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, Karnaphuli Tunnel and Padma Bridge, accusing them of widespread corruption and unusual expenditure. He said the debt burden of these projects taken during the past government has now reached over 20 crore people in the country.
He said this while exchanging views with police officers at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tejgaon on Monday (May 11th). Highlighting the report of the General Accounts Auditor and Regulator (CAG) report, the Prime Minister mentioned various aspects of the current economic pressure of the country.
Questioning the cost of the Rooppur nuclear power plant project, he said the price of a pillow for the housing of foreign officials has been priced at Rs 80 thousand and the dressing table of 30-35 thousand rupees has been bought for several lakh rupees. “Where the same project cost about Rs 14 thousand crore, where the expenditure of about Rs 96 thousand crore has been spent in Rooppur,” the prime minister said.
He also alleged irregularities in the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant Project as well as the Karnaphuli Tunnel. He claimed that even though the cost of planting trees in the name of planting trees at the mouth of the tunnel, in reality he could not exist. He also alleged that it was a waste of hundreds of crores of rupees by constructing unnecessary luxury apartments on the other side of the tunnel.
Questioning the implementation of the project of the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), the prime minister said there are allegations of withdrawing about Rs 35 thousand crore by showing the project on paper and pen only in Pirojpur district. He also said that a number of accounts of about six thousand crore rupees are not being available in one district.
The Prime Minister also compared the cost of the Padma Bridge project, saying that the Padma Bridge, where projects like the Jamuna Bridge or Bhupen Hazarika Bridge in India can be implemented in between Rs 15 thousand crore, the cost of the Padma Bridge has been spent on about Rs 54 to 56 thousand crore.
“Efforts made more effective investments in the development of education, health, police and armed forces would not have been made unnecessarily and overly cost-effective. Now that four times the burden of higher price is putting pressure on the people’s neck.”
At the meeting, the prime minister mentioned the government’s sincerity to solve the problems of the housing, transport and information technology sectors of the police personnel. However, he urged all to be patient considering the reality of the economic constraints caused by the irregularities and waste of money in the past.
Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, Home Secretary Manzoor Morshed Chowdhury and Inspector General of Police Ali Hossain Fakir were present on the occasion.