The BGEMA Bhaban controversy and a few relevant issues
Monday, 2 July 2007
Shamsul Huq Zahid
THE controversy centring the 15-storey BGMEA Bhaban near the Sonargaon Hotel in the capital has created, on the one hand, serious confusion among the people and opened up the Pandora's Box on the other.
It was no less a person than adviser in-charge of the ministry of local government, rural development and cooperatives Anwarul Iqbal blamed the BGMEA for constructing its headquarters without prior permission from the Rajdhani Unnyan Kartipakha (RAJUK). Talking to newsmen last Thursday, the adviser suggested knocking down the BGMEA Bhaban as it had been decided in case of the Rangs building situated near the Bijoy Sarani and the Airport Road crossing.
The BGMEA, which spent a huge amount of money on the construction of its headquarters occupying a part of once sprawling Hatirjheel canal, rejected the adviser's allegation claiming that it had taken approval from the RAJUK. Besides, the BGMEA said, it has maintained all the existing rules and regulations of building codes and received the approval from official agencies concerned, including DESA, WASA, Department of Environment, Titas Gas, fire service and civil aviation authorities. The association of garment exporters also mentioned the specific dates on which the RAJUK board granted permission and approved the design of the BGMEA building.
The adviser or the RAJUK is yet to come up with counter statement contradicting the claims made by the BGMEA. However, a report published in a Bengali daily last Friday said the RAJUK had accepted Tk 1.2 million from the BGMEA as fine for deviating from the approved plan.
Many people find it hard to believe that an association of so many businesspeople would spend such a large amount of money on a building without prior approval from the RAJUK. Besides, the RAJUK has to give answer to a simple question: Why it did not stop construction of the building right at the beginning if the BGMEA had really failed to get necessary permission?
The real issue is not unauthorized construction but the very site of the BGMEA Bhaban which forms a part of the Hatirjheel that once was a huge water body and helped drainage of rain waters during monsoon. Roads and other structures have gradually occupied a part of it. Fortunately, it is not lost totally to land grabbers as has happened in case of a number of canals in Dhaka.
A move taken by the present government to build a lake and a circular road in Hatirjheel area at a cost of about Tk. 15 billion has hit snags following the detection of serious irregularities by the past regimes in the allocation of land in Hatirjheel area. The immediate past BNP regime, allegedly, allocated lands, measuring nearly 25 bighas, at throwaway prices to many private parties. Such generosity on the part of persons in authority had not been done without any pecuniary benefits. They, in all probability, had received a sizeable amount from the recipients of the government land.
The Awami League government allocated two bighas of land to the BGMEA for the construction of its headquarters. It is not the BGMEA but the persons and agencies involved in the process of allocating the land should be held accountable.
The government reportedly has decided to scrap all allotments of land granted earlier to government as well as private organizations and remove all unauthorized structures in Hatirjheel and its adjacent low-lying areas to accommodate its beautification project. The preliminary work on the project is expected to begin within a couple of months.
The dispute over the BGMEA headquarters construction has two different aspects. The first one relates to the conservation of the remaining water bodies in and around Dhaka city and the second one is about a uniform policy on allocation of government lands and their pricing.
In spite of relentless media campaign, successive governments did not initiate any effective action to conserve the water bodies from encroachment. Rather in many cases, government agencies worked hand in glove with private parties to contribute to the gradual death of many water bodies. The process of encroachment is still on, if not within the city, but in a major water body that encircles the entire metropolitan Dhaka. If the authorities concerned take the trouble of visiting the flood embankment road, popularly known as Berir Bandh, on the west of Rayer Bazaar, they would notice how hundreds of structures have occupied the water body that plays the most important role in containing the flood water and rain and waste waters flowing out of the main city. If things are allowed to continue like this, this all important water body would vanish within a very short period and that would be great disaster for the residents of Dhaka city.
The present interim government that is shouldering the onerous tasks of righting many wrongs in politics, administration and society should take up the issue of saving the water bodies in and around Dhaka city very seriously. The water body is supposed to be owned by the government. How could individuals sell a part of it to others for building medical colleges, schools, residential buildings etc.? A section of officials in the land ministry and other field officials are involved in such illegal transfer of government land to private parties.
In addition to saving the water bodies, the government should formulate a uniform policy on government lands and constitute a permanent body for sale and transfer of all government lands. For instance, if the ministry of communication wants to sell or give temporary lease of a piece of land under its ownership it would have to approach that permanent body for making all the necessary arrangements. The permanent body, however, should be legally barred from taking any move in this respect violating government rules and policy.
THE controversy centring the 15-storey BGMEA Bhaban near the Sonargaon Hotel in the capital has created, on the one hand, serious confusion among the people and opened up the Pandora's Box on the other.
It was no less a person than adviser in-charge of the ministry of local government, rural development and cooperatives Anwarul Iqbal blamed the BGMEA for constructing its headquarters without prior permission from the Rajdhani Unnyan Kartipakha (RAJUK). Talking to newsmen last Thursday, the adviser suggested knocking down the BGMEA Bhaban as it had been decided in case of the Rangs building situated near the Bijoy Sarani and the Airport Road crossing.
The BGMEA, which spent a huge amount of money on the construction of its headquarters occupying a part of once sprawling Hatirjheel canal, rejected the adviser's allegation claiming that it had taken approval from the RAJUK. Besides, the BGMEA said, it has maintained all the existing rules and regulations of building codes and received the approval from official agencies concerned, including DESA, WASA, Department of Environment, Titas Gas, fire service and civil aviation authorities. The association of garment exporters also mentioned the specific dates on which the RAJUK board granted permission and approved the design of the BGMEA building.
The adviser or the RAJUK is yet to come up with counter statement contradicting the claims made by the BGMEA. However, a report published in a Bengali daily last Friday said the RAJUK had accepted Tk 1.2 million from the BGMEA as fine for deviating from the approved plan.
Many people find it hard to believe that an association of so many businesspeople would spend such a large amount of money on a building without prior approval from the RAJUK. Besides, the RAJUK has to give answer to a simple question: Why it did not stop construction of the building right at the beginning if the BGMEA had really failed to get necessary permission?
The real issue is not unauthorized construction but the very site of the BGMEA Bhaban which forms a part of the Hatirjheel that once was a huge water body and helped drainage of rain waters during monsoon. Roads and other structures have gradually occupied a part of it. Fortunately, it is not lost totally to land grabbers as has happened in case of a number of canals in Dhaka.
A move taken by the present government to build a lake and a circular road in Hatirjheel area at a cost of about Tk. 15 billion has hit snags following the detection of serious irregularities by the past regimes in the allocation of land in Hatirjheel area. The immediate past BNP regime, allegedly, allocated lands, measuring nearly 25 bighas, at throwaway prices to many private parties. Such generosity on the part of persons in authority had not been done without any pecuniary benefits. They, in all probability, had received a sizeable amount from the recipients of the government land.
The Awami League government allocated two bighas of land to the BGMEA for the construction of its headquarters. It is not the BGMEA but the persons and agencies involved in the process of allocating the land should be held accountable.
The government reportedly has decided to scrap all allotments of land granted earlier to government as well as private organizations and remove all unauthorized structures in Hatirjheel and its adjacent low-lying areas to accommodate its beautification project. The preliminary work on the project is expected to begin within a couple of months.
The dispute over the BGMEA headquarters construction has two different aspects. The first one relates to the conservation of the remaining water bodies in and around Dhaka city and the second one is about a uniform policy on allocation of government lands and their pricing.
In spite of relentless media campaign, successive governments did not initiate any effective action to conserve the water bodies from encroachment. Rather in many cases, government agencies worked hand in glove with private parties to contribute to the gradual death of many water bodies. The process of encroachment is still on, if not within the city, but in a major water body that encircles the entire metropolitan Dhaka. If the authorities concerned take the trouble of visiting the flood embankment road, popularly known as Berir Bandh, on the west of Rayer Bazaar, they would notice how hundreds of structures have occupied the water body that plays the most important role in containing the flood water and rain and waste waters flowing out of the main city. If things are allowed to continue like this, this all important water body would vanish within a very short period and that would be great disaster for the residents of Dhaka city.
The present interim government that is shouldering the onerous tasks of righting many wrongs in politics, administration and society should take up the issue of saving the water bodies in and around Dhaka city very seriously. The water body is supposed to be owned by the government. How could individuals sell a part of it to others for building medical colleges, schools, residential buildings etc.? A section of officials in the land ministry and other field officials are involved in such illegal transfer of government land to private parties.
In addition to saving the water bodies, the government should formulate a uniform policy on government lands and constitute a permanent body for sale and transfer of all government lands. For instance, if the ministry of communication wants to sell or give temporary lease of a piece of land under its ownership it would have to approach that permanent body for making all the necessary arrangements. The permanent body, however, should be legally barred from taking any move in this respect violating government rules and policy.