Rajuk set to falter on timeline, again

Purbachal, Uttara Projects
Rajuk set to falter on timeline, again
Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) may miss the deadline for allotment of plots at Purbachal New Town Project and Uttara Model Town (3rd Phase) by June due to non-completion of scrutiny of around 1.65 lakh applications submitted against over 7,000 plots.
Besides, Rajuk has missed the deadline (January this year) again for starting handing over the plots, which were allotted in 2001-2005 under the two projects. It will take another six months for Uttara to start even the process while three months for Purbachal project, officials at Rajuk said.
Although State Minister for Housing and Public Works Abdul Mannan Khan earlier told The Daily Star that it would take two months to complete the total process of plot allotment since the last date of application, the minister changed his stance due to huge submission of applications.
“Around 1.65 lakh applications were submitted under the two projects and two months is not enough to scrutinise and complete other process. But we are trying to do this as early as possible,” said the minister.
An official at Rajuk said they received 1,64,644 applications under the two projects till April 30. Of them, 42,600 plot seekers are expatriate Bangladeshi. Around two lakh application forms were sold against around 6383 plots under Purbachal project and around 870 plots under Uttara (3rd phase), he said.
Rajuk sources said now 100 officials are working to scrutinise the applications though only 30 officials were assigned initially.
An uncertainty about allotting the plots in a transparent way is still looming, as the authorities concerned are yet to fix any criterion for allotting the plots, sources said.
The state minister said they are yet to finalise the criteria of plot allotment but working to find out the best way to make it transparent.
On November 25, 2008, Rajuk sought application in 12 categories including MP, justice, journalist, government service holder, autonomous body, Armed Forces, artist/sportsman, businessman and private service holder. The authorities later extended the time twice which ended on April 30.
Chairman of Rajuk Md Nurul Huda said they would engage the experts of Bangladesh University of Engineering Technology to complete the job as early as possible.
Rajuk has so far completed land development works and internal road construction works in six sectors out of 30 under Purbachal project. Although the plot handover was scheduled to start in January, it could not be done due to lack of pillaring works of the plots.
“We will start handing over plots from August in six sectors–1,4,11,13,14 and 17 after completing pillaring works,” said ABM Rafiqul Islam Khan, project director of Purbachal project.” Around 3,000 plots in the six sectors will be handed over to the allottees, he said.
He said they would try to handover plots of 16 sectors by December while the rest 14 sectors by 2012, the deadline of completion of the project.
The Rajuk is yet to start handing over plots under Uttara 3rd phase though its website says its will start in January this year.
Md Nurul Islam, project director of Uttara 3rd phase, said they have already completed the land development work of sector 15 but they will start handing over the plots by December.
He said road construction work of the sector has been going on to start the handing over process by December.
He said construction works of two bridges have been going on while works of rest of 10 bridges could not start, as the ministry concerned is yet to select the contracting firm to give the job. Eighty seven percent land filling works so far has been completed, Nurul said.
In 1966, Rajuk took Uttara Model Town project and completed in 1992. In first phase, they allotted 6,000 plots of different sizes on 950 acres of land. It started the work of Uttara extension in 1992 and completed in 1998 in the second phase. Rajuk acquired 438 acres of land and allotted 5,315 plots in second phase.
Rajuk so far has allotted 8,295 residential plots, 550 commercial plots and around 200 institutional plots in Uttara third phase. In 2004, it allotted about 15,500 plots under Purbachal project.
Rajuk had reserved 4,000 plots for the Adibashi and 1,000 for the affected. Of these, 2,823 plots have been allotted.

Courtesy of The Daily Star