80 Crore BDT Spent in 10 Years on 12 Bengali AI Tools, Usage Remains Dismal

On December 15 last year, Faiz Ahmad Tayyab, former special assistant to the chief adviser of the interim government, inaugurated an artificial intelligence (AI) platform named Kagoj.ai. One of the platform's prominent features is OCR, which converts text from images or documents into Word files.

Despite the high-profile launch, the usage of this government service remains minimal. Most users rely on ubiquitous alternatives like Google Lens, which comes built-in on smartphones and effortlessly performs the same OCR tasks for free. Numerous other free applications have been offering these services long before the government's Kagoj.ai was introduced.

The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Division has spent a staggering 80 crore BDT over a span of 10 years to develop 12 software tools, including OCR, speech-to-text, spell and grammar checkers, and Bengali translation systems. The primary goal was to facilitate and enrich the use of the Bengali language in the IT sector.

The project, titled "Enrichment of Bengali Language in ICT through Research and Development," was originally initiated in 2016 during the Awami League government's regime. Implemented by the Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC) under the ICT Division, the project has a total government-funded allocation of 158 crore BDT. Its deadline has been extended three times, most recently pushing the completion date to June 2028.

Critics and industry insiders argue that the new interim government should have rigorously reviewed and scrapped unnecessary projects initiated during the Awami League era, ensuring strict accountability for the funds spent. Instead, the project's duration has simply been extended without addressing the core inefficiencies.

When asked about the project's efficacy, ICT Secretary Md. Mamunur Rashid Bhuiyan admitted, "Several tools have been developed under the Bengali language enrichment project. However, I wouldn't say all the work has been very meaningful. The tools haven't reached the people the way they were supposed to."