The government has taken a move to prepare recruitment guidelines for Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) in a bid to bring disciplines in the road transport sector.
Sources said effort has been made to address the issues of corruption, malpractices and financial irregularities that have gripped the state-run agency since long.
"The guidelines are being prepared to deal with various issues, for example, staying in a post for years violating the government's service rules," said an official involved in preparing the guideline policy.
He said many officials and staff of BRTA have been working at its Dhaka office on deputation for more than eight years, although they are posted to BRTA offices outside the capital city.
BRTA is responsible for formulating necessary rules and regulations for all motorised vehicles including registration, licence and fitness certificates of vehicles. More than 800 staffers including engineers are now working at BRTA offices in seven divisions and district level offices.
Apart from the BRTA headquarters in Dhaka, two more offices are also functioning at Mirpur and Iquria where more than 200 people are working. BRTA also operates some driving training centres.
Earlier, the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges took various measures including digitalisation of BRTA to curb corruption, malpractices and financial irregularities.
Besides, introducing a biometric system in driving tests, computerised screening of fitness of vehicles, data on learners, setting up of radio frequency identification centres at its offices could help BRTA fight corruption and irregularities, sources said.
It was found that issuance of genuine licences could not ensure genuine drivers with skills in driving on the streets. The computerised fees deposition system could not check harassment in paying extra fees.
Fitness certificates are often issued without the presence of transports while there is still lapse in the system of checking fitness of vehicles.
Sources said the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges has already sat with all BRTA officials several times to review all these issues, but they are yet to finalise the guidelines.
They said the guidelines are being prepared based on a proposal put forward by the former BRTA chairman who is now the secretary of Road Transport and Highway Division.
