Only 2 percent of the work has been completed on the Sheikh Hasina Specialized Jute Textile Mill project, which was allocated over Tk 500 crore. Shockingly, before the suspension of the project activities, around Tk 28 crore was spent without any official approval, raising serious questions about financial mismanagement and transparency.
This information emerged during a meeting of the Planning Commission’s Project Evaluation Committee (PEC), which is currently reviewing a controversial “project completion” proposal for the mill. The original project was approved to be carried out in Jamalpur, but the revised proposal inexplicably shows the project area as the Latif Bawani Jute Mills in Dhaka, further confusing the issue.
According to Planning Commission sources, the initial project cost was Tk 518 crore. However, after the mill was declared closed and operations halted, a revised proposal of only Tk 39.82 crore was submitted to complete the project. Despite this, actual physical progress stands at a mere 2.11%, with financial progress at only 7%.
One of the most alarming revelations is the unauthorized expenditure related to land development work. The Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Department (IMED) report shows that 550,000 cubic meters of soil development was carried out on 34 acres before September 30, 2020. The approved project allocation for land development was Tk 61.8 crore for just 85,641 cubic meters of work. The actual work done was nearly six times more, valued at approximately Tk 344.6 crore, meaning Tk 282.8 crore was spent beyond the approved budget with no contracts or work orders issued for this excess.
This blatant over-expenditure without proper authorization reflects extreme mismanagement and lack of accountability.
The shifting of the project area from Jamalpur to the Latif Bawani Jute Mills in Dhaka in the revised proposal adds another layer of confusion and mismanagement. Officials at the PEC meeting condemned this as a clear example of irresponsibility in project administration.
Moreover, despite the meager progress, a proposal costing Tk 39 crore was submitted for project completion, which is nearly three times the earlier revised proposal of Tk 108.4 crore. No satisfactory explanation has been provided for this cost escalation.
The decision to halt the project was taken in September 2020, yet the revised proposal was delayed by over two years, only submitted in January 2023. This delay, coupled with lack of transparency regarding cost variations, drew criticism during the PEC discussions.
The ministry and the implementing agency, Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC), were repeatedly called out for negligence, poor coordination, and failure to provide clear answers about the unauthorized work and expenditure.
When questioned, Project Director Engineer Md. Tofazzal Hossain stated that the unauthorized work took place in 2020 and referred queries about the current revised cost to BJMC officials. The BJMC chairman deferred explanations to the project director.
Dr. Mustafa K. Mujeri, former Director General of the Bangladesh Development Research Institute, described the situation as deeply troubling, highlighting the absence of transparency and accountability. He warned that such weak planning, implementation failures, and administrative lapses convert development projects into financial burdens rather than assets.
The central question remains: Who benefited from the Tk 28 crore spent without approval? Was it used genuinely within the government sector, or did it vanish into the pockets of influential individuals?
This scandal-ridden project serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for reform in project implementation and oversight to safeguard public funds and ensure genuine development.
