The upazila engineer in Basail, Tangail, Kazi Fattaur Rahman, has been transferred with immediate effect (stand release) after bamboo was used instead of steel rods to cast a footpath slab on a bridge being built at a cost of 10.9992 crore taka.
Under an office order signed on Thursday (September 24) by LGED chief engineer (grade-1) Md Belal Hossain, he has been moved from Basail upazila to the upazila engineer’s office in Rowangchhari, Bandarban. Kazi Fattaur Rahman confirmed his stand release. Sources said several rounds of investigation into the bamboo scandal are under way.
After a case was filed, police arrested sub-contractor Shah Alam. So far, one sub-assistant engineer has been suspended and two engineers, including the executive engineer, have been served show-cause notices.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has also launched a drive to look into the matter. A team from the ACC’s Tangail office visited the site on Wednesday (September 23), led by assistant director Md Biplob Hossain.
In the same case, LGED sub-assistant engineer Md Moniruzzaman has been temporarily suspended. Tangail district LGED executive engineer Jahanara Parvin and Basail upazila engineer Kazi Fattaur Rahman were served show-cause notices for alleged negligence of duty. The decisions were communicated in three separate office orders and letters signed by LGED chief engineer Belal Hossain.
Sources said upazila engineer Kazi Fattaur Rahman filed the case against two people from the contracting firm: contractor SM Jahangir Alam and sub-contractor Shah Alam.
The bridge, 90.06 metres long, is being built over the Moraganggi river in the Maijkhara area of Basail municipality, on the Basail GC-Kauljani UP road via Maijkhara GPS, at a cost of 10.9992 crore taka. The joint venture of M/S Yunus Al Mamun and M/S Zakir Enterprise is carrying out the work, which began in September 2022 and was due to finish in February this year. The deadline was extended when the work was not completed on time. About 80 per cent of the bridge is now complete, with 20 per cent remaining.
Locals allege that at about 10:30pm on September 20, the contractor’s workers began casting the footpath slab using bamboo instead of rods. When locals saw this and objected, work stopped, and they filmed it on their mobile phones. After the locals left, work resumed that night and the casting was completed. The matter came to the authorities’ attention after the videos spread on social media.
Asked about Kazi Fattaur Rahman’s stand release, Tangail district LGED executive engineer Jahanara Parvin avoided the question, but confirmed that two engineers had been served show-cause notices.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report