One of the prerequisites of any organisation to function properly is that it has adequate manpower and it is free of corruption, but like many other government organisations, the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) is an undermanned and corrupt entity. As a result, the regulatory body’s performance has always remained below the mark. Absence of required number of personnel is one of the reasons why BRTA is failing to deliver in the field level work. For smooth running, the BRTA needs an additional 2,282 people at its various departments. But it is surprising to note that against the long-standing demand of a large workforce, the finance ministry has approved a plan to provide the regulatory body only 96 staffers.
Therefore, after recruiting this number of additional personnel, we can hardly expect there will be a meaningful change in the delivery of the BRTA services, even though by the new recruitment the regulatory body will have dedicated workforce in every district, a director in every divisional headquarter and an additional circle in Dhaka. The districts that will get dedicated workforce are Narail, Lalmonirhat, Jhalakathi, Barguna, Panchagarh, Meherpur and Shariatpur. At present, manpower of other circles provides services to these places.
Among the duties of BRTA, the most important ones are issuing driving licenses and vehicle-fitness clearances. But at present only 123 inspectors are virtually struggling to ensure fitness for tens of thousands of vehicles. Shortage of inspectors also causes service seekers to wait a long time for fitness certificates. According to the regulatory body itself, it needs 1000 inspectors to manage the increasing number of vehicles. So, the BRTA will have to grapple with a huge number of vehicles if only 20 new inspectors are recruited as planned.
Besides the paucity in workforce, there is also the ubiquitous presence of corruption in the delivery of BRTA services. As a result, the regulatory body has always failed to ensure that the driving licenses it issues are going to right hands and that vehicles that are plying on the roads are all fit. These twin anomalies, experts say, are among the main reasons for a higher rate of fatal accidents on the roads and highways.
For the regulatory body to perform smoothly, the BRTA needs a thorough overhaul. As part of this, it is as much necessary to recruit adequate manpower to its various departments, especially the ones that give driving licenses and vehicle fitness clearances, as it is necessary to root out corruption from this organisation.
