The government will disburse money from the budget to the various ministries and divisions for beefing up security in order to protect state assets and human lives from blockade violence.
Sources said the Finance Division has been recently directed to release funds from the “Unexpected Fund” to meet the demands that several ministries and divisions had placed for enhancing security.
For the next three months, the Railway Ministry has sought Tk26 crore for hiring additional members of police, Ansar, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and the armed forces to beef up security at more than 1,000 points along the railway lines.
The Home Ministry has also placed its own demand for fund to arrange for better security during the blockade.
During the 2013 pre-election political violence, removing fishplates of railway tracks and causing trains to derail has been a “popular” method of sabotage. This year too, several such incidents have been reported from around the country since the BNP-led 20-party alliance enforced its non-stop blockade on January 6.
There have been allegations that similar funds disbursed during the 2013 violence were used for personal benefits instead of enhancing security.
A government official told the Dhaka Tribune: “We have to give the money to the Railway Ministry as soon as possible because we have been ordered to do so. But the Finance Division will be cautious in disbursing the fund this time.”
Since the BNP-led alliance’s blockade began about two weeks ago, passenger buses have been the biggest targets of arson attacks and vandalism on the highways across the country; as a result, pressure on railway services increased manifold.
On Thursday, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said the political situation would cool down within a week and his ministry would provide all kinds of support to bring things to normalcy.
AB Mirza Azizul Islam, economic adviser to a former caretaker government, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday: “The government does not have any choice but to disburse fund from the unexpected head of the budget for this fiscal year.
“If necessary, the allocation can be adjusted in the revised budget,” he advised.
He also said the economy of Bangladesh may drown deeper into trouble unless the political parties reach a consensus.
The government has kept aside Tk1,200 crore in the Unexpected Fund – used for tackling any unwanted crisis situation including unrest and disasters – for the ongoing 2014-15 fiscal year.
Before the January 5 parliamentary elections, the government disbursed more than Tk100 crore for enhancing security.
