THE government is set to conduct the National Population Census-2002 at a cost of over Tk 1761 crore up from Tk 237 crore spent in previous census in 2011. What seems to be highly intriguing here as many have pointed out is that when the highly developed IT sector can deliver the job at lower involvement of few manpower, why Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) is set to recruit 650 data entry operators at a time BBS has a fully equipped IT wing. The overall project cost seems to be inflated several times to include manpower not evidently justified.
A report in a national daily on Saturday said the project cost is apparently many times higher to bewilder any casual observer. Its proposed cost on stationary procurement is 10 times higher over the earlier occasion. A former director of BBS has rightly sounded critical about the huge spending programme saying it is abnormally high and unbelievable. He finds the proposed cost of technology is beyond his understanding and moreover recruitment of huge number of data operators is apparently unrealistic when data processing machine can swiftly run the job. So also the cost of countrywide area map procurement at 75 times higher seems to be highly irrelevant.
The project spending looks like a huge spending festivity to raise questions behind motive of huge expenditure and we would say it must be recast forthwith to save public money. Experience suggests the lion part of the budget may be grabbed by unholy quarter around the project under the cover of supply contracts, hiring consultants and procurement of materials at several times higher price than market price. Bureaucrats, powerful ruling party men and IT advisers may take the bigger chunk from behind. Project officials may take expensive tour abroad.
We are appalled to see how public money is being grabbed under the cover of big government projects. There is no control mechanism to justify project costs by a government which is corrupt at all levels and allow public money to run amok. There is no transparency and rule of law to hold people accountable. It is pity that the government is allowing it to happen while the public debt is only multiplying. We would say it must stop.
