Public servants, army officers,autonomous body officials to get more than half of Purbachal plots

Applicants for Purbachal plots in three categories — government service holders, autonomous body officials and Armed Forces members — will get more than a half of the 6,000 plots, Rajuk officials said.
After city planning authority Radhani Unnayan Kartripakkha on November 25, 2008 invited applications, 1.57 lakh people applied for a total of 6,800 plots in two housing projects — 1,07,361 applications for 6,000 plots at Purbachal and 49,835 applications for 800 plots at Uttara (third phase).
Rajuk, which has already allotted 2,250 plots in seven categories under its Purbachal New Town Residential Project, will not hold any lottery draws in the four categories — lawmakers, government service holders, autonomous body officials and Armed Forces members, said a Rajuk official on Sunday, adding it will, however, allot 300 to 350 plots in the journalist category.
The seven categories for which Rajuk completed the lottery draws are judges, freedom fighters, wage earners, artists, sportsmen, businessmen, lawyers and private service holders.
‘Rajuk will allot plots to all the lawmakers who have submitted applications, a Rajuk official said. ‘It will allot plots to all the lawmakers who have applied in the lawmaker category and the number of lawmakers applying for the plots would be about 300. The agency will also allot about 300 to 350 plots in the journalist category in a lottery draw.’
‘Rajuk will allot more than 3,000 plots in the three categories, which is more than a half of the total number of plots meant for applicants in nine categories,’ the official said.
Plots in the three categories will be allotted on the basis of the basic and existing salaries and the duration of their service period of government service holders, autonomous body officials and Armed Forces members, he said.
Rajuk found faulty and invalid 9,161 out of the 70,548 applications for Purbachal plots in the seven categories, the official said.
The housing and public works secretary, Mahbub-ur Rahman, on Saturday said the lottery for the Uttara Model Town Project plot allocation would be held by October. He said a similar model would be followed in the lottery draw for Uttara plots.
The Rajuk chairman, Nurul Huda, said, ‘We will now hold lottery only in one category, for journalists, for Purbachal plot allotment. We will also hold a lottery for the Uttara Model Town residential project in seven categories.’
‘We are now sorting out the applications of journalists as we are yet to decide whether the officials of media houses such as circulation managers, peons and other administrative employees should be considered in the journalist category,’ the Rajuk chairman said.
He also said seniority of journalists would not be considered in holding the lottery draw.
Urban planning expert Nazrul islam, also the chairman of the University Grants Commission, told New Age on Tuesday that Rajuk should allot more plots to low- and middle-income people.
‘Plot distribution in different categories should be made in proportionate with the number of applicants. The maximum number of plots should be given out in the category which received the highest number of applications,’ he said.
He, however, suggested the government should now construct and allot flats rather than plots.

Courtesy of NewAgebd