Revive the railways
The government's sluggishness with regard to revitalising the Bangladesh Railway (BR) is deplorable to say the least. Our railway system is the most potential yet the most neglected sector in the country. Not only has not a single kilometer of new track been added to the nearly 3000 kilometer tracks that we inherited during partition, if anything the railway network has shrunk, and currently only 30 percent of the total surface area is covered by railways in the country.
Given the population increase and the consequent rise in passenger traffic, the government must develop all the available modes of communication allowing greater option to commuters. But the state of disrepair the BR is in has to be addressed urgently.
The railway happens to be the principal mode of transport in the country but has been gradually edged out by the road sector, where the bulk of development expenditure for the transport sector has gone. Over the last two decades road communication has become the more preferred option for travelers for variety of reasons. But, in spite of that and the existing lacunae in the railway system, 64 million people used the railways in 2009, compared to 53.8 million in 2008 an increase of one million passengers.
Given the foregoing it is quite unbelievable that plans to resuscitate the ailing system, taken up in Feb 2007, continue to be hamstrung by the foot dragging of the concerned ministries, primarily because no one wants to let go of their control over the BR. When the donors have pledged the required sum, reportedly for the first time multilateral donors have pledged such a huge sum for this sector, and have already released a tranche of 130 million USD out of the pledged 730 million USD, it seems absurd that the restoration plans would remain stuck up because the promised reform of the railways, precondition for the loan, has not been initiated as yet. And the files have been moving to and fro, between the ministries and the BR HQ for the last several years. There should be a limit to bureaucratic wrangling.
Given the compulsions to revive the railways without delay, the communications ministry must move fast. We take note of the communications minister's remarks that papers are all but ready and the changes will be made effective soon. But the internal dissensions between the ministries of finance and communications, as to how the management structure should be, do not send out the right signals.
Frankly, the time spent on the railway reform project, on which the bulk of the loan is predicated, has been inordinately lengthy, and may turn out to be self-defeating, with the possibility of the donors withdrawing their commitment if the matter is not speeded up.
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