Mah Alam, JU

The construction cost of the ongoing mega project at Jahangirnagar University has set to increase amid reformation of the previously made Details Project Plan (DPP) following the ‘elevated’ price of construction materials.

Therefore, the university administration has sought additional budget allotment from the ministry in order to execute the freshly made plan of ‘Jahangirnagar University Further Development Project’, said officials.

Director of the mega project, Nasir Uddin said, ‘We have earlier sent the DPP to the ministry for approval with irrelevant market price of some item like furniture, and that has to be revised to maintain quality.’

‘We have proposed a slight increase in the budget of the project and the process still depends on the approval of the government, he added.

The director also mentioned a Tk 17,786 costly locker for each 6,000 students at the newly constructed six residential halls in support of the requirement of additional budget allotment.

According to the existing Details Project Plan, the university authorities in 2018 planned to provide a single size bed, a table with attached self, a chair for each 6,000 students at the six new dormitories at the costs of Tk 5,964, Tk 1908 and Tk 594 respectively.

After about three years of the plan, the mega project concerned officials found the amount ‘inadequate’ and revised the allotments for bed, table with self, chair at the costs of Tk 12,800, Tk 16,000 and Tk 4,838 respectively.

Therefore, the budget fixed for bed, table, chair witnessed a sharp elevation that put the additional pressure of over Tk 50 crore for the procurement of furniture at students’ room, kitchen, dining, hall offices in the new dormitories.

Meanwhile, JU authorities have decided to inaugurate two newly made residential halls out of six in February this year by providing only bed items to the students for lack of furniture procurement budget, making it challenging for students to study.

‘The other furniture item will be provided to the residents as soon as the government disburses allocation for the other items’, said president of the JU hall provost committee Professor Abdullahel Kafi.

 ‘Until we can manage the budget, the students have to tolerate a little inconvenience’, he added.

Asked why it was necessary to include more costly furniture items on the DPP, member of the technical committee of the project Professor Hafizur Rahman said, ‘The decision of procuring high quality furniture from HATIL was made at the meeting of the project steering committee.’

But the member confirmed that the administration did not conduct a quality test against the price of furniture by an expert team of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology as mentioned at the DPP.

‘No meeting regarding the furniture testing by an expert team has been held so far’, he said.

Organizing Secretary of Bangladesh Chhatra Union JU unit Alif Mahmud said, ‘The administration did not conduct the test of quality of furniture by an expert team as they must have planned to misappropriate money from the furniture item.’

JU vice chancellor Nurul Alam said, ‘We have decided not to compromise with the standard of construction materials, furniture at the residential hall. So, we need more money on the procurement of top-class furniture than the previously disbursed amount.’

'We are facing trouble as the government has refused to allocate more budget in furniture procurement. However, we still believe that the government will consider the consequences’, he said.

When asked about the quality test, the VC said, ‘The products of HATIL are very good as far as I know.’

Earlier on October 24, 2018, the Executive Committee of National Economic Council approved a project involving Tk 1445.36 core for further development of Jahangirnagar University.