Demand to scrap decision to give 25 acres to Dhaka Club
Thursday, 8 November 2007
Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon (BAPA) Wednesday demanded cancellation of the Public Works Ministry decision to give 25 acres of land to the Dhaka Club for a golf course at the Suhrawardy Udyan in the city, reports UNB.
The area earmarked for the golf course has already been handed over to the Dhaka Club under an agreement signed June 18 between the Public Works Ministry and the Dhaka Club.
Talking to reporters after visiting the planned golf course site at the Suhrawardy Udyan, BAPA Vice President Kazi Madina said:
"Suhrawardy Udyan is the lung of Dhaka city… people of the country have been shocked to hear the news."
She said: "We're not against sports. But the area under Suhrawardy Udyan shall remain open for all. If the golf course is made, then a certain area will be restricted and many trees felled. This will put a negative impact on the environment."
The BAPA vice president said this was also a historical place from where the call for independence movement came. "So, we must preserve the place in the greater interest of the nation."
She said they would soon go to the chief adviser's office to request him to withdraw the decision so that everyone can use this green heaven for recreation.
BAPA General Secretary Abdul Matin Khan said they would try to create public opinion against the move to create a golf course inside Suhrawardy Udyan.
Replying to a query, BAPA Joint Secretary Zakir Hossain said the government got the land from the Nawab of Dhaka and then gave it to the Dhaka Club. Later, considering the national interest, the government again reclaimed the land from the Club.
BAPA Treasurer Mohidul Hoque Khan, ex-PSC member and DU professor Dr Khondoker Bazlul Haque were, among others, present at the impromptu briefing at north gate of the Engineers Institute.
The area earmarked for the golf course has already been handed over to the Dhaka Club under an agreement signed June 18 between the Public Works Ministry and the Dhaka Club.
Talking to reporters after visiting the planned golf course site at the Suhrawardy Udyan, BAPA Vice President Kazi Madina said:
"Suhrawardy Udyan is the lung of Dhaka city… people of the country have been shocked to hear the news."
She said: "We're not against sports. But the area under Suhrawardy Udyan shall remain open for all. If the golf course is made, then a certain area will be restricted and many trees felled. This will put a negative impact on the environment."
The BAPA vice president said this was also a historical place from where the call for independence movement came. "So, we must preserve the place in the greater interest of the nation."
She said they would soon go to the chief adviser's office to request him to withdraw the decision so that everyone can use this green heaven for recreation.
BAPA General Secretary Abdul Matin Khan said they would try to create public opinion against the move to create a golf course inside Suhrawardy Udyan.
Replying to a query, BAPA Joint Secretary Zakir Hossain said the government got the land from the Nawab of Dhaka and then gave it to the Dhaka Club. Later, considering the national interest, the government again reclaimed the land from the Club.
BAPA Treasurer Mohidul Hoque Khan, ex-PSC member and DU professor Dr Khondoker Bazlul Haque were, among others, present at the impromptu briefing at north gate of the Engineers Institute.