Two hundred eighty Members of Parliament (MPs) are going to get an allocation of Tk 20 crore each for the development of rural infrastructure. They will implement projects in their respective constituencies in next 4 years at a cost of Tk 5 crore every year.
A total of 20 lawmakers from city corporation areas and MPs from reserved women's seats will be out of the proposed allocation. As per the decision, the local government department is going to undertake projects worth of Tk 6,468.75 crore for 280 MPs across the country.
Sources in planning commission said the local government division will place this proposal at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Sunday. The project titled 'Important Rural Infrastructure Development Project-3 on Priority Basis' will be implemented from July this year to June 2024.
Helaluddin Ahmed, senior secretary of the local government department, said the project aims at uplifting rural infrastructure. So, there is no scope of the lawmakers of city corporations to avail that opportunity.
Besides, there is no specific area for the reserved women lawmakers, where they will implement the project, that is why they have been kept out of project purview. In reply to a question, secretary said, "We have no complaints about the previous two phases of the project. However, any specific allegations of corruption and irregularities will be investigated, he added.
According to sources, the MPs will get an allocation of Tk 5 crore a year for the construction of roads, bridges and culverts in their respective constituencies. Earlier, after the formation of the first Awami League government in 2009, each MP received Tk 15 crore for the development of infrastructure in his constituency.
At that time the cost of the project was Tk 4,692.84 crore. It was run from March 2010 to June 2017. In the second term of the Awami League government, MPs were allocated Tk 20 crore. At this stage, the cost of the project is estimated at Tk 6,084.4 crore.
It is running from July 2015 to June 2021. The Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives has taken initiative to give Tk 20 crore to the MPs in the third term without completing the project. Local government ministry officials say lawmakers will not receive money directly under the scheme.
MPs will only name the project of their choice in their constituency and the projects will be implemented by Local Government Engineering Department (LGED).
According to the Ministry of Local Government, 305.21 km of new upazila roads will be constructed under the third phase of the project. Around 60.36 kilometers roads in unions will be constructed. Roads stretching 5,075.6 kilometers will be developed and 1,090.6 km roads will be maintained. Around 7,992.22 meters of bridges and culverts will be constructed in rural roads with a length of less than 100 meters.
