The Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) Tuesday referred the Mymensingh bypass road project to the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) after finding irregularities in the scheme, report agencies. ECNEC asked Communications Ministry to lodge complaints with the ACC. "Measures will be taken in this regard," Finance and Planning Minister M Saifur Rahman told reporters after a meeting of the ECNEC at NEC conference room. The project was undertaken in 1998 at a cost of Tk 200 million (20 crore) and it ultimately cost Tk 420 million (42 crore). "Without prior approval from the authorities concerned, officials involved in the project have carried out additional works by spending extra funds and violating rules," Finance Minister M Saifur Rahman told reporters. Chaired by the finance min ister, the meeting approved the revised implementation plan of Health, Nutrition and Population Sector Programme (HNPSP) worth Tk 324.50 billion (32,450 crore), including Tk 107.93 billion in project aid. It also approved a plan for setting up of 11 private secondary model schools in capital Dhaka and six other divisional headquarters at a cost of Tk 1.14 billion, and modernisation and expansion of the passenger terminal of Sylhet Osmani International Airport involving Tk 470 million. Saifur said ECNEC was considering deputing one official from the Ministry of Finance to facilitate the project implementation as the sector's implementation status remained poor for lack of efficiency. Senior ministers and officials concerned were present at the meeting.
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