The Dhaka City Corporation is yet to start repairing 237 kilometres of roads, drains and footpaths while the work was supposed to begin in July 2010.
Two months ago, the corporation officials told New Age that they were hoping that the project, named ‘Improvement of damaged roads, drains and footpaths of Dhaka City Corporation,’ would get the approval of the Executive Council of the National Economic Council before the end of Ramadam.
However, ECNEC has not yet approved the project
The officials said that the project plan has already been approved by the local government and rural development ministry and by the Planning Commission – and the DCC is just waiting for the final ECNEC approval.
In the meantime, roads in many areas of Dhaka, including Dhanmondi, Uttara-Dakkinkhan, Goran, Sipahibagh, Shanir Akhra, Demra, Jatrabari, Rampura, Banasree, Moghbazar and Old Town of Dhaka, are becoming increasingly pot-holed.
According to the city corporation, the project will cover one sixth of the total 4,278 kilometres roads, drains and footpaths in the city.
Repair work will take place in all but one of the DCC zones, with work in zone-6 being undertaken through another project, officials said.
The corporation will bear 15 per cent of the total Tk 266 crore project cost, with the remaining Tk 226 crore being borne by the government over a two-year period.
Project director Moham-mad Nurul Amin expressed his hope that the project would very soon be approved by ECNEC.
He said the corporation could start the work immediately after the project was approved but that the DCC had to wait for the government to agree to provide the money.
The corporation’s chief executive officer, Abul Kalam Azad, told New Age that the project work would definitely start in the current fiscal year.
He also said some other projects were also ongoing to repair damaged roads, drains and footpaths of the city beside this project.
‘We repair those roads first that are in the worst condition,’ he said, adding, ‘Development is a continuous process.’
