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MPs want MPO to resume

Staff Correspondent
Ruling Awami League lawmakers yesterday in the third session of parliament demanded immediate resumption of the task to enroll educational institutions in the monthly payment order (MPO) system as they are facing public wrath in their constituencies for its nonoperation.
During the question-answer hour a number of AL lawmakers said the system of MPO has been suspended for last five years. The government is yet to begin it though it assumed power in January, the lawmakers said.
“We can't visit our constituencies because people often want to know when the MPO enrollment will begin. We are unable to inform them about resumption of the system since we know nothing about it," AL lawmaker Suranjit Sengupta said.
He demanded that the education minister specify a date for resumption of the task.
Speaker Abdul Hamid also echoed the lawmakers' voices and urged the education minister to say something positive. Ruling party lawmakers welcomed the speaker's remark
thumbing their desks.
In response to lawmakers' queries, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said a committee led by Education Adviser to the prime minister Alauddin Ahmed is working to formulate new policy on MPO.
“On finalisation of the policy, we will begin listing educational institutions in MPO,” the education minister said.
He said around 6,000 educational institutions are waiting to be enrolled in MPO which had been suspended for last five years, three years of the past BNP government and two years of the caretaker government.
"We need at leastTk BOO crore to bring those waiting educational institutions into the system of MPO. We have budgetary allocation ofTk 112 crore only,” the minister said.
He blamed the past BNP government for registering many disqualified educational institutions in MPO system on political grounds.
"The government is collecting information to identify the educational institutions listed in MPO illegally and on political consideration during the past BNP-led government," he said adding, "Action will be taken against those institutions."
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Citing an example of such disqualified institutions, he said all the 20 examinees, of eight colleges took a public examination, but none of them could pass.
“On average Tk 1.5 crore is being spent on each of the colleges enjoying the MPO status,” said the education minister.
“We can't let public money to be wasted in such a way, ” he added.
AL lawmakers KM Khalid, ABM Anwarul Haque, Abdur Rahman and Murad Hasan were among others who demanded that the government immediately resume bringing educational institution in the system of MPO.
The parliament session resumed yesterday at around 4:00pm without the participation of the main opposition BNP.
In response to a query of AL lawmaker Benzir Ahmed, the education minister said the government has taken steps to print 18.68 crore books for distribution free of cost in the next education year among students from class I to X.