Govt. Mega-projects to come under CCTV surveillance: Planning Minister

Planning Minister MA Mannan has reiterated his call to complete the government development projects in time. He said revising project more than once is like ‘a disease of the economy’.  

“A project can be revised once or twice. If the review proposal comes for the third time, the prime minister will be notified regarding it,” he told the inter-ministry meeting at the NEC Conference Room in the capital on Tuesday. 

Claiming better surveillance boosts up project progress and quality, the minister said CCTV cameras will be installed at the ongoing mega-project sites.     

“This technique has already brought positive results at Water Resource Ministry’s project sites. Technology is getting better, and we will take advantage of it,” commented the minister. 

Planning secretary Md Nurul Amin and General Economics Division (GED) member Dr Shamsul Alam were present at the press briefing, held after the inter-ministry meeting.

In 2018-19 fiscal, the government was able to finally spend 94.36 percent of ADP, which is slightly higher than that of the previous fiscal. 

The planning minister expressed satisfaction over the expenditure on the ADP, saying that the development projects remained on hold for nearly three months due to the national election.  He hoped for a 100 percent ADP expenditure in the current fiscal.

Mannan said, he directed to have the project directors transferred frequently so that the projects are implemented smoothly and properly. 

The planning minister claimed that many projects were held up for years owing to land related issues. He suggested to be more sensible in the use of land and to be prudent in the use of cultivable land before acquiring.   

He also said, the ministers have been urged to carry out the prime minister’s directives in ECNEC meeting.  He also told the press that the PM’s directives will be sent to the ministries in book form.