Railway left in the lurch

The struggling Bangladesh Railway is yet to get the much-needed $600 million loan as for three and a half years bureaucracy had been stalling the rail reforms that the multilateral donors insisted on, officials concerned said.

The donors had initially released $130 million but they are now saying it would not be able to release the remaining $600 million more to build rail lines, buy locomotives, improve signalling system and other works unless the reforms are introduced to make Bangladesh Railway independent.

The Asian Development Bank, World Bank and the Japan International Cooperation Agency had committed $730 million funding to revamp the 150-year-old Bangladesh Railway. Since the independence of the country, this is the first time multilateral donors had pledged such a huge financing for the sector, railway officials said.

According to official documents and sources, the initiatives stalled or lost pace due to the roles of different ministries that did not want to give up their control over the railway.

Fed up with the government's delays, the ADB on June 16 wrote, "Despite our continued mutual efforts, we have yet to see sufficient progress [regarding the reforms] that will allow us to proceed with the processing of the second loan." The ADB had previously released $130 million to Bangladesh as the first part of its $430 million loan.

Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain, however, gave assurance that the reforms are just around the corner.

"We are creating the Bangladesh Railway Division where its director general will be a grade-1 officer. Whatever decisions the railway take, they would be executed," the minister told The Daily Star.

He added that the ministry has made a summary on the reforms package and it will be sent to the high-powered secretary level committee headed by the cabinet secretary next week. This committee will scrutinise the proposal and send it to the cabinet for its approval. When the cabinet approves it, Bangladesh Railway will turn into a division.

"The reforms are being done in such a way that the donors will be satisfied," he said, adding that the donors were unhappy with the ministry's poor performance in the past but are now very supportive as it has sped up the work.

In this regard, the ministry sent a proposal to the cabinet division on August 11, requesting to take necessary measures to form the railway division.

Since the reforms initiatives were launched in 2006, the communications ministry apparently did not pursue the scheme seriously. At first the ministry appointed British consultant Pricewaterhouse Coopers in early 2007 to formulate the reforms package.

The consultant took a long time framing the proposal and it submitted its report on November 5, 2008. Then the ministry sat on the report for one year. In November last year, the ministry sent the proposal package to the cabinet division for approval.

The cabinet division sent back the proposal to the ministry asking it to take opinions of the finance and the establishment ministries.

This process continued till April last. It was sent back to the Bangladesh Railway for its opinion in May.

These opinion exchanges brought in some vital changes in the reforms.

Prepared in line with the Indian Railway Board, the proposal suggested an organogram where a 10-member Bangladesh Railway Board will be set up with the director general of the railway acting as its the chairman, who will hold the rank of a secretary and work under the minister directly. Members of the boards will enjoy the rank of additional secretaries. This idea seeks to make the Bangladesh Railway autonomous.

But the finance ministry opposed the idea and suggested putting the communications secretary between the chairman and the minister's communication. Thus the chairman would be regarded as a grade-1 official without the status of a secretary, railway officials said.

According to the proposal, there will be no appointment to the post of additional secretary and posts of joint secretaries if the proposed railway division is created. The railway board officials will discharge the secretarial jobs under the directive of the communications secretary.

A top rail official requesting anonymity explains, "This means, the DG [director general] would not report directly to the minister, he would report to the secretary as he is doing now."

Meanwhile, senior railway officials sat for a meeting on August 13 where they demanded more authority of Bangladesh Railway like the Indian Railway. Otherwise, they said the main objective of the reforms would not be attained.

The meeting demanded the government immediately approve the reforms to get the fund promised by the donors.

Director General of Bangladesh Railway Md Belayet Hossain responding to a question on the railway's role in the stalled reforms told The Daily Star, "I have nothing to do in this regard. Everything is depending on the ministry."

REVAMPING THE RAILWAY
The reforms initiative was launched with the signing of $430 million loan agreement with ADB in February, 2007. Later, the World Bank committed $200 million and JICA $100 million in various development projects in the railway.

In 2007, ADB released $130 million, of which $30 million went to the reforms project and the rest for construction of double rail track between Tongi and Bhairab.

The projects the ADB promised to fund include strengthening Bangabandhu Multipurpose Bridge, upgrade signalling in 14 stations between Ishwardi and Darsana, restoration of repair yards and extension of loops at different stations from Khulna to Parbatipur and construction of metre gauge track from Bogra to Jamtoil.

World Bank pledged to fund six projects, including restoration of 71 kilometres of rail line (Akhaura-Laksam section), double tracking of the same routes and buying 15 metre gauge diesel-electric locomotives and 50 metre gauge coaches.

JICA showed interest in providing money for the construction of double-line projects from Chinki Astana to Laksam, procurement of rolling stock and rehabilitation of Paharpur workshop.

The development partners are also pushing the government for bringing the proposed reforms immediately to get funds for the Padma Bridge, which includes a railway line, said communications ministry officials.

Railway in Bangladesh remains a neglected sector contrasting with many other developing nations including our next-door neighbour India. For being the safest and cheapest mode of transport, railway should have by now become the chief mode of transport for both passengers and goods in a populous country like Bangladesh, observed a number of railway officials.

"Instead of expanding, the railway network has rather shrunk over the years," one of them regretted.

-Daily Star