Allocation to MPs increased by Tk 50 million for five years

Members of Parliament will now get Tk 10 million more every year for five years to develop their constituencies.

The Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved a project to develop important rural infrastructure on a priority basis at a meeting on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presided over it.

Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said the allocation had been increased following inflation and increasing cost of living.

An MP got Tk 30 million every year of their five-year term during the tenure of the previous government.

Kamal said MPs could use the allocation for infrastructure development including construction of roads, bridges and culverts in their constituencies.

The funds will be made available to 284 MPs.

Sixteen MPs from the city corporation areas and MPs of the reserved seats for women would not get the fund, he said.

MPs from city corporation areas were kept out of the list as they would get funds from another project, he said.

The planning minister said the ECNEC endorsed eight development projects involving an expenditure of Tk 105.53 billion, including TK 14.48 billion as project aid.

He said the rural infrastructure development project, costing Tk 60.76 billion, would be completed by 2019.

Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) would implement the government-funded project, he said.

The minister said the lawmakers could not spend the money on their own.

The LGED would implement the projects based on the lawmakers’ suggestions submitted to the local government ministry, he said.                                                                                     

The ECNEC also cleared two projects, worth Tk 1.31 billion, to strengthen Border Guard Bangladesh to fight Rohingya infiltration, human trafficking and drug smuggling.

In the projects, the government would establish buildings at 60 border outposts besides installing logistics equipment for border management.

The ECNEC gave the go-ahead to the construction of a modern armoury, replacing the 19 old arms depots of the police force at a cost of Tk 620 million.

The project is planned to be completed by 2018.

The ECNEC approved another project to consume six ships.

Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) would complete the Tk 18.43 billion project by 2018, he said.