Out of a total of 2,800 employees recommended for regularisation by the social welfare ministry, the Ministry of Establishment agreed to regularise the 2,228 members of the development project staff, Social Welfare Minister Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid told journalists at a press briefing yesterday.

Mujahid said whereas crores of taka were earlier spent for the regularisation of employees from development projects, irregularities and bribery in this case have now been stopped.

Asked whether those staff will be a burden for the government in the future, the minister said this is one of the recruitment processes in the government offices.

Commenting on various development activities by the ministry, he said the recovery rate was over 90 per cent against loans disbursed in the form of micro credit under various social welfare programmes.

The government has no plan to make the capital free from beggars, the minister said, adding, "There is hardly any capital city in the world where beggars do not exist and it is now an international problem."

Social Welfare Secretary Kazi Monwarul Haque was present at the briefing.