Mandating city corp approval to increase harassment, construction cost: REHAB
The builders want that either the city corporations or Rajuk would take charge of the construction sector
Requirement for approval from city corporations in addition to a nod from the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) for the construction of structures in Dhaka city will increase the complexity, harassment, and cost of construction by manifold alleged the real estate developers.
It takes months to get approval from Rajuk, and if the builders have to take permission from the city corporations too, they will face similar harassment at two places and the customers will suffer immensely due to a chaotic system, said the REHAB at a press conference at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka on Saturday.
"We want either the city corporations or Rajuk to take charge of the construction sector. We too want the government to rescue the canals and rivers, and if necessary we will assist in this regard, but two institutions cannot increase the people's suffering by taking responsibility at the same time," said the REHAB President Alamgir Shamsul Alamin.
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"We have been calling for a one-stop service centre for a long time to reduce harassment, but more new surveillance agencies are being added, which will increase our difficulties," he continued.
He said earlier there was a rule of taking approval from the city corporations for constructing high-rise buildings, but that changed in 2019 when the government introduced a simple process of getting approval from three agencies (Rajuk, Fire Service, Civil Aviation) instead of 10-11 organisations to ease the process of passing construction plans. The latest plan to involve the city corporations would contradict the efforts taken to facilitate this process.
He also said Rajuk already has 50 years of experience in this sector, where the city corporations do not have the necessary manpower or structure for this task at the moment.
"We have already expressed our concern to the Rajuk chairman and the housing minister, saying that such proposals are not investment-friendly, but we have not received any response from the government," he said, adding that the government should reconsider the decision.
REHAB leaders including its First Vice President Kamal Mahmud, and Vice President Engineer Sohail Rana were also present at the press briefing.
