Hundreds of people in Zamsha Union of Singair Upazila in Manikganj district have been enduring severe inconvenience for over a year due to the stalled repair work on a crucial village road.
Despite the project being scheduled for completion within the set timeframe, it has been delayed due to allegations of poor-quality work. The project was suspended after villagers reported the flaws to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
The delay has left local residents, especially seriously ill patients and the elderly, facing daily hardships. The road, stretching almost four kilometers from Bangla Bazaar to Matikata, serves as the main communication artery for several villages.
Thousands of people, students, and vehicles transporting agricultural products for local markets and hospital-bound patients rely on this important village road every day. However, the road has been in a dilapidated state for an extended period, filled with potholes and cracks, forcing villagers to risk their safety while using it.
In the 2023-24 fiscal year, the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) took on the task of repair of the road under the rural road repair and preservation project. The contract was awarded to the construction company Nirman Prokoushuli at a cost of around Tk3.13 crore with the work scheduled to be completed by April 2024.
However, soon after the project began, concerns were raised about the quality of construction materials used, particularly the substitution of old bricks alongside new ones for the road’s edges. Local villagers suspected that substandard construction materials were being used for financial gain, prompting the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to intervene and halt the project work.
As a result, the project has been at a standstill for over a year. The people most affected by this delay are those relying on the road for transportation, especially patients in need of urgent medical attention.
Local residents have reported that transporting seriously ill individuals to hospitals has become a dangerous ordeal, with fears of accidents as vehicles risk flipping over due to the road’s poor condition.
This road becomes nearly impassable during the monsoon season due to mud and water accumulation, further complicating travel.
Auto-rickshaw driver Rafiqul Islam said, “Every day I drive on this road, I risk my life. A slight mistake and the vehicle could flip over. The situation is even more dangerous when I’m carrying a patient.”
Another rickshaw puller, Abdul Malek, added, “It’s been a year and a half since the work stopped. My vehicle needs repair almost every day due to the poor road conditions. Half of my daily earnings go into repairs. But without passengers, how would I survive and feed my family?”
Local journalist Abdul Motaleb observed, “The work was supposed to be completed within five months, but almost nothing else has been done. Sending children to school has become a struggle. Where did the government’s money go?”
Local housewife Nazma Khatun pointed out, “A journey that should take 15 minutes now takes 35 to 40 minutes. The jarring road conditions make it worse for seriously ill patients.”
Despite the ongoing issues, it is reported that the construction company, which has completed only 26 per cent of the work, has already collected nearly TK80 lakh in payments.
In response, contractor Mohammad Abu Sayed Khan from Nirman Prokoushuli said, “The work was halted due to some technical and administrative issues. These problems have been resolved, and work will resume shortly. It will be completed within a month.”
Executive Engineer of Manikganj LGED, ABM Khorshed Alam, assured that investigations into the quality concerns had been conducted. He promised that, after the completion of the necessary official procedures, the project work would restart as soon as possible.
Local people are pressing hard for the immediate restart of road repairs. They also demand 100 per cent completion of the project, as further delays could lead to accidents in the near future.
