Ponds, canals re-digging for creating jobs for youths

The government is going to take a Tk 1,335-crore nationwide project for development of ponds and canals to involve local youths in various income-generating activities.

The Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) yesterday approved the project at a meeting in the National Economic Council auditorium. The project is expected to conclude in 2023.

After the meeting, State Minister for Finance and Planning MA Mannan said the prime minister had directed the ministries concerned to remain vigilant so no corruption occurs in the project work.

Local Government Engineering Division will implement the project under which a total of 2,532 government (khas) ponds and canals will be re-excavated.

According to the planning ministry proposal, Integrated Water Resource Management Unit prepared a list of the ponds and canals through a country-wide survey.

The main aim of the project is to preserve surface water by re-excavating the ponds and canals, said the proposal. Alongside, employment will be created for local unemployed youths through farming fish and duck, and cultivating vegetables on the banks of the ponds.

Ecnec also revised another project for giving stipends in primary education, increasing the amount of the cost to Tk 6,923 crore, and also extended its tenure by two years.

The project was passed in 2015 when its cost was Tk 3,067 crore and the tenure was till 2017.  Now the tenure has been extended to June 2019.

Under the project, around 1.30 crore students throughout the country will be given stipends.

In the meeting, Ecnec also approved the revised Bangladesh-Myanmar Friendship Road (Balukhali-Ghundhum border road) project at Tk 115 crore.

Original cost of the 2-km road construction from Balukhali to Ghundhum was Tk 84 crore, which means as per the revised cost per kilometre construction expense would be Tk 57.5 crore. In this regard, the planning ministry proposal said the cost had shot up as some new components were included.

For establishing direct road communication connecting Bangladesh with Myanmar, China and Thailand, the project was taken in 2015, said a planning ministry official, adding that Bangladesh's trade with these countries would increase after completion of the project.

Along with these three, Ecnec approved nine other projects at a cost of Tk 10,331 crore. All of them will be implemented with the government's own resources.