Tarique flags inflated costs in Rooppur, Padma Bridge

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Monday alleged that audit findings uncovered major financial irregularities and inflated expenditures in several large infrastructure projects, including the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel and Padma Bridge.

Speaking during a meeting with senior police officials at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tejgaon as part of Police Week-2026, Tarique Rahman said reports submitted by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh revealed extensive misuse of public funds in multiple development projects.

The Prime Minister said the present government inherited a weak economic and administrative structure after taking office, comparing the situation to that of a “war-ravaged country.”

Referring to the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project, he cited audit observations alleging unusually high expenditures on residential facilities built for foreign personnel. According to him, audit records showed pillows costing Tk80,000 each and dressing tables valued at Tk30,000-35,000 being listed at nearly Tk4-5 lakh.

Tarique Rahman also questioned the overall project cost, claiming that the debt taken for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project at four times the cost has now become a burden on every citizen.

Comparing infrastructure costs, he referred to India’s Bhupen Hazarika Bridge, saying it was completed at around Tk14,000-15,000 crore, while the Padma Bridge cost approximately Tk54,000-56,000 crore.

Discussing the Karnaphuli Tunnel project, he alleged that unnecessary luxury buildings were constructed near the tunnel area and claimed audit findings showed Tk50 crore had been withdrawn for tree plantation despite no visible evidence of the work.

The Prime Minister further alleged that Tk35,000 crore disappeared from Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) projects through paperwork without actual implementation, while another Tk6,000 crore allegedly went missing in a single district involving multiple departments.

He said such inflated spending and loan burdens ultimately fall on ordinary citizens and limit the government’s ability to invest more in sectors like policing, healthcare, education and defence.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, Home Ministry Senior Secretary Manzur Morshed Chowdhury and Inspector General of Police Md Ali Hossain Fakir, among others, also addressed the programme.