& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Padma Bridge Cost

Govt plans to issue bonds for $500m IMF to give low-interest loan

Staff Correspondent
The government is planning to issue bonds to meet $500 million expected fund gap for the Padma Bridge project.
Following an inter-ministerial meeting at the finance ministry on implementation ofWorld Bank financed programmes and projects, Finance Minister AMA Muhith told reporters yesterday that $1.8 to $1.9 billion will be required to complete the Padma Bridge.
He also said the government might face a funding gap of around $500 million, but bridging the gap will not be a major problem as it is thinking of issuing bonds to cover the deficit.
SEE PAGE 15 COL 6 FROM PAGE 16
He said the government hopes to start the work of the bridge next year.
The river ways master plan, and World Bank project assistance for the next three years were also discussed in the meeting.
Agriculture minister, food minister, water resources minister, communications minister, Prime Minister's Economic Adviser Dr Mashiur Rahman and other high officials attended the meeting, where officials of the World Bank were also present.
The finance minister also said the government has a grand plan for the country's riverways consisting of 6,000 kilometres of routes. It will take several steps to improve the routes including dredging of the rivers. Town protection projects are also included in the plan.
He said during the immediate past caretaker government a good number of projects for the power and energy sectors were submitted to the World Bank. "We will seek assistance from the World Bank for different projects for power transmission. in addition to power generation," he added.
According to a World Bank statistics, the bank currently has 26 active projects in the country, with an assistance commitment of $2,821.3 million.
In the last fiscal year, Bangladesh was the 3rd highest recipient of World Bank assistance in South Asia, amounting to $1,096 million. A report of the bank said, "T his is the highest Bangladesh received in recent times."
Muhith also met a two-member IMF delegation led by its adviser in the Asia Pacific region as well as its Bangladesh mission chief, Masato Myazaki, yesterday.
After the meeting the finance minister said IMF will give low interest loans to Bangladesh at the rate of .25 percent, which currently is .75 percent, adding that the international organisation has no plan to fold its local office.