deputy commissioner); former UNO of Munshiganj Sadar, Rubayet Hayat; and Assistant Commissioner of Munshiganj Sheikh Mezbah-ul-Saberin.

Actions are being taken by the public administration ministry following a directive from the Prime Minister’s Office.

Mahbub Hossain, project director of Ashrayan Project-2, told a TV reporter that his department was aware of questionable construction work in 36 upazilas of 22 districts.

“We are investigating each and every case. Departmental actions as per the service rules will surely be taken against the officials found guilty,” he added.

He said the allegations against certain officials include bribery and the use of poor-quality building materials that resulted in cracks on the walls and flooded floors only after moderate rain.

The action may include termination from the job or no annual increment, he added.

On June 25, twenty-one houses built in Sarishabari, Jamalpur, got flooded after moderate rain. The 21 landless families who moved in to the houses only about six months ago were forced to leave. The houses were constructed at a cost of Tk 35.70 lakh.

In May in Bogura’s Sherpur, seven out of 22 houses built under the Ashrayan Project-2 partially collapsed after moderate rain.

The houses on the bank of Burigari canal cost Tk 38.50 lakh. They were handed to 22 homeless families in January as gift in Mujib Borsho.

Ahmad Kaikaus, principal secretary to the prime minister, told Somoy TV that upazila-level officials implemented the project.

“Failure in such a project… means our failure. This is embarrassing. We would show zero tolerance. There is no reason to show leniency,” he added.

“We repeatedly said that we will not tolerate sloppiness. Unfortunately, such incidents have taken place in many areas.”

He said certain officials implemented the project without examining what infrastructure should have been there at the outset.

“In some cases, we have found lack of attention. We are not showing leniency towards the people who didn’t pay attention or have been sloppy,” he was quoted as saying.

Show-cause notices have been issued in some cases against the deputy commissioners who allegedly didn’t pay the attention the project deserved.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on June 20 handed over 53,340 homes and land ownership documents to homeless and landless families across the country under the second phase of the Ashrayan Project.

Local government representatives and public servants, on behalf of the prime minister, handed over the documents of the houses on two decimals of land.

On January 23, 70,000 such houses along with documents were given to homeless and landless people under the first phase of the project following the PM’s announcement that there would be no homeless and landless people in Bangladesh.

After reports of poor build-quality of the houses, officials at the PMO became disappointed, sources said.

The PMO directed deputy commissioners concerned to investigate into the allegations in districts including Madaripur, Gazipur, Manikganj, Brahmanbaria, Cumilla, Pabna, Bogura, Sirajganj, Natore, Kurigram, Barguna, Mymensingh, Netrakona, Jamalpur.

The deputy commissioners later formed committees to probe the allegations.

Besides, a team of officials from the PMO visited all the sites and found that irregularities and negligence in construction work.

The DC’s were asked to submit their probe reports to the PMO, sources said.