Patna, Aug. 31: The World Bank has sent a letter to the Bihar Apda Praban- dhan Evam Punarnirman Society (BAPEPS) to clarify its position on the agreement it has to make for enganing Owner Driven Reconstruction Collaborative (ODRC) in executing the housing project in the flood-devastated Kosi division.

The project would be executed using a part of the $220 million loan the World Bank has committed to the state for undertaking reconstruction work in the Kosi region after the deluge in 2008.

BAPEPS is a society set up by the state government to oversee different projects to be taken up in the Kosi region using the World Bank loan money. ODRC is a group of non-government organisations working in the area since 2008.

Both the World Bank and the state government had given green signal to BAPEPS to enter into an agreement with ODRC for executing the housing project. But BAPEPS had recently come up with certain queries, putting on hold the proposal to enter into an agreement, a state government source told The Telegraph.

He said the World Bank had asked BAPEPS to suggest an alternative in case it did not enter into an agreement with the ODRC. Else, it would reconsider its plan of extending help for the housing project in the Kosi region.

Alarmed by the World Bank letter, a meeting of BAPEPS, which is headed by development commissioner K.C. Saha, would be convened on September 5 in which a final decision on the agreement is likely to be taken.

“Things would be sorted out in the meeting,” Saha told The Telegraph.

According to plan, total one lakh dwelling units would be constructed in the Kosi region using the loan money.

The work on the housing project has been started with the state government providing the fund hoping that it would be reimbursed by the World Bank.

Each beneficiary would be given Rs 60,000 for constructing house. In the first instalment, each beneficiary would get Rs 35,000.

As things stand now, 30,000 beneficiaries have been given the first instalment. The work in 18,000 dwelling units has begun.

In the other cases, building material are being mobili- sed to start the construction work.

“We have been working in the area with the UNDP support and funds from other sources. If BAPEPS does not enter into an agreement with us, it would be difficult for us to continue working there,” one of the ODRC office-bearers said.

He claimed that the work done by ODRC had played a vital role in effective implementation of the housing project in which the success rate was above 90 per cent.

Confirming the work done by ODRC, the state government official said any delay on finalising the BAPEPS stand on the agreement issue would affect the process of availing the second trench of the World Bank loan, the preliminary meeting for which had already been held.