Padma bridge project cost soars further

The cost of a small component of the Padma bridge project has increased 20 percent mainly due to price escalation of construction materials caused by delays in implementation.

Some Tk 1,097.40 crore was earmarked as expenditure for the Janjira Approach Road and Selected Bridge End Facilities of the Padma bridge project in 2013. It has now been increased to Tk 1,319 crore.

The go-ahead to the additional expenditure was given on Wednesday.

The cabinet committee on purchase had earlier directed the Bridges Division to submit a detailed proposal with specifics such as where the cost has been increasing and the causes of delay.

According to the Bridges Division, the costs increased Tk 324 crore. Since some works were cut and the cost decreased by Tk 102 crore, additional funds of Tk 221.60 were sought.

The additional funds will be within the cost limit for the component, said the Bridges Division.

The implementation of the component was delayed by about 21 months as the World Bank suspended granting loans for the project and other causes, it said.

But 99 percent of the work for the component has been completed. By February next year it will be fully done.

In January last year, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council approved the second revision of the Padma bridge project, where the total cost now stands at Tk 28,793.38 crore -- almost three times the original estimate.

When approved in 2007, the project was supposed to cost Tk 10,162 crore, but in 2011 it was revised upwards to Tk 20,507 crore.

As of September this year, Tk 14,277 crore has been spent on the project, according to statistics from the Bridges Division.

Some 48.73 percent of the allocation for main bridge construction has been expended, 34.18 percent of river training, 95.63 percent of construction of Mawa approach road and 91.78 percent of service area.