Woes of tenants in capital city
Saturday, 1 December 2007
Asma Hoque
Parveen Akhter, a resident of Mirpur-10, has been without tap water for three days. Every morning she sends her maid to bring water from a mosque nearby. The maid brings the water-filled plastic containers to the ground floor from where the middle-age housewife carries them to her third-floor apartment.
"We have been without water for three days, but the house owner does not care about my plight," says an angry Parveen. "The owner has no concern and makes no efforts to solve the problem. We are left on our own. This is atrocious."
Disruption in water supply is one of many problems and difficulties Parveen and other tenants in the apartment house face.
"There is a lack of security here, because there is no security guard and protection," Parveen complains. Ishrat Jahan, a resident of Maghbazar, has similar complaints against house owners. "I pay the rent regularly. Yet the owner does not really like us. We don't know why. He treats us as if we are criminals. There is no independence and peace of mind here for tenants," says Ishrat.
Most tenants in Dhaka, a city of 10 million people, will agree with Parveen and Ishrat.
The misery suffered by Dhaka city tenants is endless. In most cases, house owners are just interested in collecting the monthly rents and they do little to make sure the tenants get for what they pay. Moreover, the owners often keep the tenants on toe and there is hardly any freedom or choice for them. Tenants are forced to change their lifestyle and live according to the whims of the owners.
For example, if a tenant is hospitable and likes to invite relatives and friends too often that must change. There are house owners who object to tenants inviting relatives and friends to their house simply because the guests can make noise or use extra water.
Tenant Shahjahan Ali knows it better. His agreement with his house owner is that he will pay the rent by the 10th day of the following month and must not bring in too many guests. Ali has never defaulted in payment of rent by the deadline, but he cannot cut down on his guests. This has angered his landlord who has asked Ali's family to vacate the house at the earliest. "It's just a harassment," says Ali having failed to rent another house with his little income.
Even though there is no dependable data available, it is estimated that three quarters of Dhaka city's population live in rented houses. So laws should protect the majority, not the minority, the house owners. Even if there are laws in favour of the tenants those are not executed properly. Landlords are powerful and can evict a tenant in a 24-hour notice. As tenants are not aware about their rights, house rent goes on rising without any explanation.
A recent survey by Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) has revealed that Dhaka's house rent jumped by more than 162 per cent during 1993-2003.
"Of course, there are laws regarding house rent, but we lack in implementation of the laws," says a CAB official.
Altaf Hossain, who works at a private company, pays 4,000 taka a month for a two-room apartment in Shahjahanpur. He has received a notice from the owner: the rent will go up by 150 taka a month from the year-end. The owner has cited an increase in gas price for the proposed hike.
Rashida Akhter, a resident at Kalaynpur, says she has recently left a house after the rent was raised twice in a year by a total of Tk. 500. The owners cite rising construction cost and utility services plus holding tax in support of raising the house rent.
Says Rashidul Islam, a retired government official who rents out a four-storied house in Khilgaon: "I've spent all my savings on this building. I'm paying interest on loans. The construction materials have become costly. Rates on utility services have gone up. I've no other way but to hike the rent."
People like Islam do not really care about the law that bars the owners from arbitrary hike in house rent. According to the law, a government surveyor is supposed to determine the rent of a house considering its size and the facilities offered. It also prohibits taking months of rent in advance or any salami for the house. Giving receipts of the rent payment has been made compulsory. Those who violate the law can be punished by the court of law. There is also a provision of fining the lawbreakers.
"There is enough in the law to protect the interests of the tenants," says Dhaka Judge Court lawyer Mohammad Nasiruddin. "But neither the house owners nor the tenants really take advantage of the law."
Many argue that there should be an office to monitor the law to make it more effective.
— NewsNetwork
Parveen Akhter, a resident of Mirpur-10, has been without tap water for three days. Every morning she sends her maid to bring water from a mosque nearby. The maid brings the water-filled plastic containers to the ground floor from where the middle-age housewife carries them to her third-floor apartment.
"We have been without water for three days, but the house owner does not care about my plight," says an angry Parveen. "The owner has no concern and makes no efforts to solve the problem. We are left on our own. This is atrocious."
Disruption in water supply is one of many problems and difficulties Parveen and other tenants in the apartment house face.
"There is a lack of security here, because there is no security guard and protection," Parveen complains. Ishrat Jahan, a resident of Maghbazar, has similar complaints against house owners. "I pay the rent regularly. Yet the owner does not really like us. We don't know why. He treats us as if we are criminals. There is no independence and peace of mind here for tenants," says Ishrat.
Most tenants in Dhaka, a city of 10 million people, will agree with Parveen and Ishrat.
The misery suffered by Dhaka city tenants is endless. In most cases, house owners are just interested in collecting the monthly rents and they do little to make sure the tenants get for what they pay. Moreover, the owners often keep the tenants on toe and there is hardly any freedom or choice for them. Tenants are forced to change their lifestyle and live according to the whims of the owners.
For example, if a tenant is hospitable and likes to invite relatives and friends too often that must change. There are house owners who object to tenants inviting relatives and friends to their house simply because the guests can make noise or use extra water.
Tenant Shahjahan Ali knows it better. His agreement with his house owner is that he will pay the rent by the 10th day of the following month and must not bring in too many guests. Ali has never defaulted in payment of rent by the deadline, but he cannot cut down on his guests. This has angered his landlord who has asked Ali's family to vacate the house at the earliest. "It's just a harassment," says Ali having failed to rent another house with his little income.
Even though there is no dependable data available, it is estimated that three quarters of Dhaka city's population live in rented houses. So laws should protect the majority, not the minority, the house owners. Even if there are laws in favour of the tenants those are not executed properly. Landlords are powerful and can evict a tenant in a 24-hour notice. As tenants are not aware about their rights, house rent goes on rising without any explanation.
A recent survey by Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) has revealed that Dhaka's house rent jumped by more than 162 per cent during 1993-2003.
"Of course, there are laws regarding house rent, but we lack in implementation of the laws," says a CAB official.
Altaf Hossain, who works at a private company, pays 4,000 taka a month for a two-room apartment in Shahjahanpur. He has received a notice from the owner: the rent will go up by 150 taka a month from the year-end. The owner has cited an increase in gas price for the proposed hike.
Rashida Akhter, a resident at Kalaynpur, says she has recently left a house after the rent was raised twice in a year by a total of Tk. 500. The owners cite rising construction cost and utility services plus holding tax in support of raising the house rent.
Says Rashidul Islam, a retired government official who rents out a four-storied house in Khilgaon: "I've spent all my savings on this building. I'm paying interest on loans. The construction materials have become costly. Rates on utility services have gone up. I've no other way but to hike the rent."
People like Islam do not really care about the law that bars the owners from arbitrary hike in house rent. According to the law, a government surveyor is supposed to determine the rent of a house considering its size and the facilities offered. It also prohibits taking months of rent in advance or any salami for the house. Giving receipts of the rent payment has been made compulsory. Those who violate the law can be punished by the court of law. There is also a provision of fining the lawbreakers.
"There is enough in the law to protect the interests of the tenants," says Dhaka Judge Court lawyer Mohammad Nasiruddin. "But neither the house owners nor the tenants really take advantage of the law."
Many argue that there should be an office to monitor the law to make it more effective.
— NewsNetwork