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Takerghat Limestone Project 'abandoned' for years 200 staff get salary for no work

IQBAL SIDDIQUEE, Sylhet
Takerghat Limestone Project, the country's lone such scheme in Tahirpur upazila, is lying virtually abandoned for years due to alleged mismanagement and faulty policy of the authorities.
About 200 employees are getting salary without work while equipment and other property worth about Tk 20 crore remain unutilised.
The project of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), located near Bangladesh's border with Meghalaya state of India, could not be made viable even after using the site as a station for limestone import for Chhatak Cement Factory from India.
During a recent visit to the project, equipment and property including three cranes, generator and locomotive engines were seen left in the open and getting
damaged. The three-km rail track is also not utilised.
Work on the project started in 1961 after discovery of an estimated 13.25 crore tonnes of limestone in the hilly areas of Takerghat, Lalaghat, Lamakata, Bhangarghat and Baglibazar.
Extraction of limestone was started in 1965. Initially, limestone was collected after blasting dynamite. This continued for several years till it was stopped following objection by India. Only 16,63,783 tonnes have so far been extracted.
The work is suspended for years now. The authorities claim that the project is not viable because of high expenditure.
The main quarry has now turned into a 140-150 feet deep pond. An official said it remains full of water almost throughout the year and extraction of limestone is stopped as it is too deep and totally unsafe.
As the project remained virtually abandoned for years, the BCIC in June 1999 decided to use the establishment as a station for limestone import for Chhatak Cement Factory.
Last year, only 50 tonnes of limestone were imported through the Takerghat station against a target of 50,000 tonnes. The target could not be fulfilled due to PSI-related problems, the officials said.
The cement factory needs about 2.5 lakh tonnes of limestone yearly for cement production. Of this, 1.25 lakh tonnes are imported from India and 75,000 tonnes are collected from other sources.
A geologist at Shahjalal University, when contacted, said, the limestone deposit in Takerghat area is of very good quality.
The extraction can be easily started by using modern equipment, he said.