Dhaka-Tongi-Joydevpur railway expansion project riddled with mega corruption

The Dhaka-Tongi-Joydebpur railway expansion project was taken up without any feasibility study and approved without a fixed work scope, leading the authorities to revise the project several times. The project, which was supposed to be completed in 2015, will now take till June 2027 – a whopping 12-year delay – and will cost Tk 3,342.55 crore, almost four times the original estimate.
The in-depth monitoring report of the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) has asked the authorities to retest the qualities of the ballast, rail and sleeper. Bangladesh Railway undertook the project in November 2012 to increase the capacity of a vital section that connects the capital with most of the country’s rail network.

The Tk 848.60 crore project aimed at constructing third and fourth dual-gauge railway lines on the Dhaka-Tongi route and a second dual-gauge line on the Tongi-Joydebpur route, was supposed to be completed within June 2015. However, the physical work of the project began in February 2019 due to complications over design and the tender process. As per the latest revision, the project cost rose by Tk 2,493.95 crore and the deadline was set for June 2027.

Project authorities cited the Dhaka Elevated Expressway construction over the rail line in the capital, complexities over land acquisition, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the hold up in starting the physical work as the major reasons behind the delay. The report stated that the project saw 63.75 per cent progress till May this year, against the revised target of 86.36 per cent by this time.
The mega project of the government has earned the badge of mega corruption for delayed implementation and cost overrun. Citizens have little hope to fix the problem as the challenges lies in the DNA of the regime.