BRT Line-3: By any means necessary
It may sound unusual that a project implementation agency will pay contractors the "retention money" while the project is running, as this is supposed to be paid after the completion of the works.
It may also sound unusual that the implementing agencies could work as guarantors on behalf of the contractors to secure supply of construction materials.
But both of these are set to be part of a project taken up to develop the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Line-3, a dedicated bus corridor between Dhaka airport to Gazipur.
Retention money is the amount an employer holds as a safeguard for any defective or non-conforming work by the contractor. The money is usually given back to a contractor once the project's defect liability period is over.
The implementation agencies said they've decided to give this cushion to contractors, who are facing serious financial crisis, in a desperate bid to complete the long-drawn project within the revised deadline of December this year.
"We should have taken legal action against them. But that would not serve our purpose. People are suffering due to delay in the project's implementation. This is why we had to take the decision," Shafiqul Islam, managing director of Dhaka BRT Company Ltd, told The Daily Star yesterday.
The development comes at a time when project authorities have already sought more time and money for the project, that has already drawn huge criticism for causing suffering to commuters of the Dhaka-Gazipur road corridor.
Titled "Greater Dhaka Sustainable Urban Transport Project", the project was taken up in November 2012, slated to be completed by December 2016 at a cost of Tk 2,037.9 crore.
Once completed, the 20.5-kilometre bus corridor will allow people to reach Dhaka from Gazipur in 35-40 minutes, a journey that now takes around 1.5 hours and can go up to four hours.
But soon after its launch, the project started getting delayed due to various issues, including changes in work scope and design and waterlogging in the project areas between Tongi and Joydebpur.
Jointly funded by the government, the Asian Development Bank, and two foreign agencies, the project has already gone through four revisions, with total cost rising to Tk 4,268.3 crore -- a whopping Tk 2,230.4 crore increase from the original cost.
Though the current deadline is set for June 2022, the project authorities have already sought time till December 2023, including a one-year defect liability period (DLP) and Tk 268.13 crore more.
If approved, the project cost could total Tk 4,536.46 crore. But the project authorities said they want to complete the project within December this year, without exhausting the DLP.
Of note, the Roads and Highways Department (RHD), Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) and Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) are implementing different parts of the project's works while Dhaka BRT company will oversee the operations.
THE CONTEXT
Dhaka BRT Company Ltd MD Shafiqul Islam said contractors for the RHD and BBA portions have been facing financial crisis from the beginning of the project, which has been hampering progress.
Two different Chinese companies are employed as contractors for RHD and BBA.
"We're supposed to pay them after a set time on the basis of the works they have done. But the companies do not have enough money to complete the works on time," he told The Daily Star yesterday.
"Following their request, we've decided to support them," he added.
Shafiqul Islam said the process is at the final stage and the contractor will have a bank guarantee against the withdrawal of the retention money.
A similar process regarding RHD's contractor is also going on, he added.
In addition, Shafiqul said they have talked with local suppliers of construction materials and are working as grantor on behalf of the contractors to expedite the works.
Mohirul Islam Khan, project director (of the BBA part), confirmed that their contractor has sought their five percent retention money back as they are facing acute cash flow crisis.
PROJECT PROGRESS
Two packages implemented by the LGED have already been completed, while RHD's package is almost 75 percent complete. Meanwhile, BBA's package has seen 63 percent progress till February this year, Shafiqul said.
"We're hopeful we can complete the works within this year," he added.
Comments