Water Resources Minister Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee on Saturday assured that the river embankment work will be carried out with full transparency and without any corruption.
He made the remarks after inspecting the riverbank protection embankment project in the Matabbarhat area of Kamalnagar upazila, which is being implemented at a cost of Tk3,100 crore.
Construction of the 37-kilometre embankment is currently underway in Ramgati and Kamalnagar upazilas.
“Those who were in power before were looting funds meant for the project and smuggling money abroad, and they are now under investigation,” he said while criticising the previous government.
Departmental action will be taken against officials involved in corruption, he said, adding that past mismanagement deprived local people of necessary protection.
Residents of the riverine areas have already lost homes and land while crop production has also been affected, and protecting them from erosion of the Meghna River remains a top priority, he said.
He added that under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, the government is committed to the development of local communities.
The minister also instructed the companies involved in the project to accelerate the work so that visible progress can be achieved before the next monsoon while ensuring the quality of construction.
The inspection programme was attended by Bangladesh National Parliament Whip ABM Ashraf Uddin Nijan, Member of Parliament Md Shahadat Hossain Selim, BNP Lakshmipur district unit Member Secretary Sahab Uddin Sabu, Joint Convener Advocate Hasibur Rahman Hasib, Bangladesh Football Federation Vice President Wahid Uddin Chowdhury Happy and BNP Kamalnagar upazila unit President Nurul Huda Chowdhury, among others.
