The Roads and Highways Department has substantially completed its road network. The road network being the most valuable asset of the country, RHD is responsible for its protection and enhance the value of this asset through proper maintenance. For this purpose the Government has created the Maintenance Circle, as a part of Interim Reorganisation in 1988.

The objective of the Maintenance Planning Circle is to contribute to the overall strategy of the Planning and Maintenance Wing by:

Planning, managing and monitoring routine and periodic maintenance activities of roads in a systematic and cost effective manner.

a) To provide regular reports to RHD management on Annual Road Maintenance Plans prepared in accordance with the HDM analysis.

b) To create awareness of the importance of road maintenance activities and the future funding requirements.

c) To allocate budgets for the various road maintenance activities.

d) To ensure that large scale periodic maintenance works are planned and executed effectively.

e) To provide reports on the effectiveness of road maintenance operations.

f) To provide structured documentation for maintenance works.

g) To provide RHD management with reports on disaster and flood situations.

The Maintenance and Planning Circle is headed by a Superintending Engineer who is supported by three Executive Engineers each in charge of a division, namely.

a) Routine Maintenance

b) Road Periodic Maintenance( East)

c) Road Periodic Maintenance (West)

The numbers of personnel in the Circle are shown in the attached table which shows the total proposed number of personnel in the Circle to be 91 which is slightly below the current sanctioned strength. There are also some changes in the numbers of staff in individual posts. The proposed number of personnel of the Circle is 22 Class I, 10 Class II, 43 Class III and 16 Class IV staff.

a) Preparation of both routine annual and periodic maintenance programs based on the RMMS and the HDM outputs and budget allocations for these to the field offices.

b) Advise the zones on the implementation of maintenance works.

c) Collect and collate data from the field offices regarding major disasters and flood damage.

d) Collect maintenance progress reports from field offices and process these to provide information to RHD & MoC management.

e) Programme, package and procure contractors and consultants for the execution of large scale maintenance works funded both by the revenue budget and GoB local funds.

f) Monitor large scale periodic maintenance works.

g) Review the demands of Zonal offices for allotment of maintenance fund under different sub-head in consideration of the defined programmes and budgetary constraints.

The budget for the Maintenance Planning Circle is shown on the attached table. The budget table shows both the annual operation and maintenance costs and the capital costs of purchasing new, and replacing old, equipment. As not all equipment will be purchased or replaced immediately the capital costs has been annualised depending on the average life of the various items of equipment. The costs shown exclude the cost of personnel who are paid for from other sources.

The costs of carrying out inspections and surveys in connection with the detailed preparation of maintenance programmes and the monitoring of maintenance activities are included. However the costs of detailed supervision of periodic maintenance works are NOT included in the Circles budgets.

On this basis the annual recurring cost for the Circle is Taka 48.72 lacs and the capital cost on an annualised basis is Taka 56.70 lacs. A total cost of Taka 105.42 lacs per annum.

The Maintenance Planning Circle requires resources for Head Quarters operations and to enable the Circle to undertake necessary investigations for contract preparation and packaging and the monitoring of Periodic Maintenance Contracts etc.

The resources required are shown in the table below :