7th Five Year Plan (FY16-FY20)
Tk 1.5 trillion needed for transport sector
UNB
The country needs to mobilize around Tk 1,487 billion for the transport sector and Tk 962.2 billion for the power and energy sector at current prices to meet its development needs over the next five years, reports UNB.
This was revealed at a consultative meeting on Chapter 5: Infrastructure Development Strategy under the 7th Five Year Plan (FY16-FY20) held at the NEC conference room in the citys Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area in the capital yesterday.
Chaired by Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, LGRD Minister Khondoker Mosharraf Hossain spoke on the occasion as the chief guest while Housing and Public Works Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain, State Minister for Finance and Planning MA Mannan and State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid spoke as special guests. General Economics Division (GED) member of the Planning Commission Prof Shamsul Alam made a Powerpoint presentation on the chapter.
Prof Alam, however, showed that around Tk 1315.3 billion would be required as ADP allocations for the transport sector under the 7th Five Year Plan (as per 2015/16 prices), while around Tk 846.5 billion would be required as ADP allocations for the power and energy sector under the new plan.
Speaking on the occasion as the chief guest, LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Khondoker Mosharraf Hossain said that the power and energy sector is playing a pivotal role in the countrys economy and without these two sectors, the nations development is unthinkable.
Regarding the growing demand for power, Mosharraf smilingly noted that the State Minister for Power and Energy might be in trouble unless there is 100 per cent electricity coverage in the country over the next three years. Putting emphasis on upgrading the road geometric design to certain standards, the minister said that his ministry is improving the geometry of the countrywide roads under the LGED to link upazila headquarters to district headquarters.
Expressing his concern over the plying of overloaded vehicles on the roads and highways causing serious damages, Khondoker Mosharraf Hossain suggested the Ministry of Planning form a high-powered committee with the Roads and Highways Department to ensure strict enforcement of necessary laws, otherwise plying of overloaded vehicles would damage roads worth thousands of crores.
Noting that nature has started taking revenge due to the over exploitation of water, especially ground water, the LGRD minister suggested taking steps to increase the water retention capacity of the countrywide rivers and water bodies so that the ground water is retained.
Housing and Public Works Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain put emphasis on utilizing local coal for utmost utilization of the energy resources, adding that the local coal by any means should not be exported abroad, rather it should be utilized domestically.
Mentioning that the Rajuk has been directed to approve design for constructing structures from this month at the Purbachal, Uttara and Jheelmeel areas, he said that the government would turn Purbachal into a self-contained independent city, perhaps as a green city.
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid said that the government has targeted to increase power generation by 1200 MW-1500 MW every year and it is in line to achieve such target.
