Megaprojects to see big cuts in allocations for failure to utilise money

Most of the fast-track projects have proposed the authorities concerned to cut their respective allocations substantially in the development budget for the current fiscal year (FY) due to lagging behind their respective implementation targets.

The project authorities have sought lower funds in the upcoming Revised Annual Development Programme (RADP) for FY 2021-22, insiders said on Saturday.

The project implementation agencies have failed to make progress commensurate with the deadlines and surrendered their outlay in the current ADP, Planning Commission (PC) officials said.

Although the government wants to complete most of the ongoing fast-track projects within two years, the failure both in terms of spending and physical work might shatter the wish, said a senior official at the PC.

The PC has already drafted the RADP for FY 2021-22 and was waiting for finalising it early next month.

The PC has slashed the Tk 2.25 trillion ADP outlay by 8.0 per cent to Tk 2.07 trillion for the current FY amid lower project execution rate in the first half (H1), officials said.

According to the PC, the much-awaited Padma Bridge construction project has proposed to surrender Tk 10 billion in the upcoming RADP from its current Tk 35 billion ADP outlay.

The Bridges Division has sought Tk 24.99 billion funds in the upcoming RADP instead of the current allocation of Tk 35 billion.

After the revised allocation for FY 2021-22, Tk 42.41 billion of the total Tk 301.93 billion project cost will remain unspent in the terminal fiscal year (FY2023), the deadline for completing the projects.

Another dream project - the MRT line-6 -also sought Tk 40.82 billion funds in the upcoming RADP from its current allocations of Tk 48 billion.

The Karnaphuli tunnel construction project sought to cut allocation by Tk 5.12 billion to Tk 11.37 billion in the RADP.

The Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMT-CL) surrendered allocations from both MRT line-1 and MRT line-5 projects as it failed to make expected progress on ground. It sought Tk 4.57 billion in the upcoming RADP against its current allocation of Tk 8.74 billion for the MRT line-1 project.

It has also surrendered 36 per cent funds from its current allocation in the ADP.

For the MRT line-5, the DMTCL sought Tk 14.81 billion from its current Tk 23 billion outlay for the MRT line-5 (northern route) project.

The Bridges Division has also sought almost half of its current outlay in the upcoming RADP for supporting the Dhaka Elevated Expressway project.

The division surrendered Tk 2.79 billion from the current allocation of Tk 5.65 billion.

A senior PC official told the FE that 10 fast-track mega projects grabbed nearly one-third of the Tk 2.25 trillion ADP in the FY 2021-22. "So, we have allocated the remaining amount for 1,581 small, medium and large projects under the current ADP."

As the fast-track projects had grabbed the large portion of the allocations this year, the PC could not provide adequate funds for many other small, medium and big projects, he added.

"Cutting allocations at the middle stage of a fiscal year creates fiscal mismanagement. Instead, if we could allocate higher funds for other priority projects, those would have been completed in time," he said.

The fiscal mismanagement not only creates indiscipline in the budget, but it also hinders quality project implementation, said the PC official.