Irregularities alleged in Tangail road development work
Imrul Hasan Babu, Tangail
Allegations of slow progress and poor quality in the development work of the Elenga-Chargabsara via Bhuapur regional highway worth Tk 12 crore have been found against the District Roads and Highways Department (RHD). Drivers and passengers
are suffering greatly due to this, and different vehicles are breaking down every day while moving on this road.
It is known that the Tangail RHD has taken up the project of repairing the road using double bituminous surface treatment method at about Tk 12.58 crore which is scheduled to be completed in June this year. It has been alleged that the road is carpeted with a mixture of stone, bitumen and kerosene. Almost 9 kilometers of the 22-kilometer road has already been completed. However, road users fear that the carpeting will not be beneficial for a long time due to the use of low-quality materials without repairing the potholes and cracks on the road. The RHD authorities had previously renovated this road twice last year.
A CNG-powered auto-rickshaw driver Zahid said, “I have to repair my vehicle very often as it gets damaged while moving on this road. Recently, my vehicle’s wheel got punctured in the Palima Bridge area on the way from Bhuapur to Elenga. Later, I had to buy a new wheel from the neighboring market and repair it.”
Not only Zahid, but many drivers like him have been affected due to road repair work. Many drivers have to repair their vehicles by keeping passengers halted on the road.
It was seen on the spot that the contractor’s people are carrying out repair work in the Kuchti area of the Elenga-Bhuapur road. The previously carpeted stones are being re-carpeted with small stones. In this, the stones put on the road are coming up as the vehicles move. The contractor claims that 35 percent of the stones will be removed. However, those stones will remain on the road. Later, those stones will mix with the road.
Locals said that the government is wasting crores of taka by doing poor quality work in the name of road repair instead of repairing the damaged part of the road. Contractors and officials are profiting from this.
Transport drivers said that the previous road was good. However, the part where there were potholes or cracks needed to be repaired. It was not right to work on the entire road by putting stones in this way.
Road subcontractor Faruk Hossain said, “According to the rules, the road repair work is being done under the instructions of the RHD authorities. Many people may not have understood, so they are saying this. The work has to be done this way.”
Tangail RHD Office Assistant Rubel Hossain said that the work is being done as instructed by the higher officials. This is how bitumen works.
Claiming that the quality of the renovation work is improving, Tangail RHD Executive Engineer Cynthia Azmeri Khan said, “Due to low allocation, renovation work is being done through double bituminous surface treatment. This will prevent vehicles from moving recklessly on the road.”
