Leaders of Bangladesh AbasanShilpa Rakkha Committee (Bangladesh Housing Industry Protection Committee), aforum of real estate companies and backward linkage organisations, havedemanded the cancellation of the ‘secret deal’ with Indian housing companySahara group to build four satellite towns in the outskirts of the capitalcity, Dhaka.
The Bangladesh Abasan ShilpaRakkha Committee (BASRC) leaders also urged the government to float tender toensure the participation of all local developing companies in the constructionwork of the proposed satellite towns, while addressing a press conference heldat National Press Club on Sunday.
They apprehended that awarding oflucrative contract to a foreign business firm without any consulting the localhousing companies and violating the government purchase policy, would cause ahuge negative impact on the flourishing local housing sector.
The leaders said the government’slatest move would not play constructive role in housing sector investmentrather, it would deepen the existing crisis and damage the usual flow of localinvestment. Signing a ‘controversial’ deal with a foreign company bypassingnational purchase policy will open up a door for large-scale corruption by avested quarter, they said; adding that the local companies are capable ofarranging even Tk 2 trillion investment if the government would place aproposal to them.
BASRC president and MD ofArchidea Property Development Ltd Dr Zahid Hossain Pradhan read out a statementand placed nine recommendations at the press conference. Among others, BASRC vice-president and MD ofMetro group Md Fakrul Islam, BASRC secretary general and chairman of Centurygroup MGR Nasir and BASRC cashier and MD of Beacon group Sakhawat Hossain werepresent at the press conference.
They also asked the government torefrain from making any such deal with any foreign company in a bid to protectthe interests of 2 crore people involving 5000 housing companies and alsodemanded that the MoU should be made public.
The formal statement ofBangladesh Abasan Shilpa Rakkha Committee (BASRC) came yesterday following themuch-talked about MoU deal between the Bangladesh government and Indianbusiness conglomerate Sahara Group on May 23 for investment of around Tk 2000crore in low-cost township schemes in Bangladesh.
As per MoU, the group’s, newlyformed Bangladesh based company ‘Sahara Matribhumi Unnayan Corporation Limited’will conceptualize, design and plan a new city near Dhaka, named Notun Dhaka(New Dhaka) and will build affordable housing for low income groups withHousing Finance support for majority applicants. The same company will alsoconceptualize, design and plan various integrated satellite townships indifferent parts of Dhaka under the Ministry of Housing & Public Works (MOPW)and with the cooperation of Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) ofBangladesh.
Source: The New Nation
