34 yrs not enough to build DNCC market at Mirpur

The construction of a new six-storey DNCC market at Section 11 of Mirpur in the city is still uncertain even 34 years after the then undivided city corporation got allotment of two acres of land for it.

Despite uncertainty, Engineering Department under the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) has expressed the hope to complete the construction work by June 2018 next.

The then city corporation market at Section 11 of Mirpur, now under DNCC, was under the housing and settlement authority. The objective of the construction of the city corporation market was to rehabilitate the businesspeople and traders doing business at New Society Market.

The housing and settlement authority then handed over the responsibility of the market to the now-defunct Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) on July 05 in 1983 with allotment of two acres of land for the construction of the market. The move for construction of the market was taken in 1999, sources at the bazaar circle of DNCC engineering department said.

But DNCC revenue office sources said it was an illegal settlement of stranded Biharis on the western side of the market and lengthy construction work is a major obstacle to start operation of the market.

Revenue office sources also said they requested the engineering department several times for quick construction of the market as the allottees of the shops have applied for handing over the shops in favour of them.

When his attention was drawn, DNCC chief engineer Brig Gen M Sayeed Anwarul Islam told the FE that the city corporation has been conducting testing of the old building by Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) at a cost of Tk 7.0 million. It includes concrete test, foundation test, rod test so that safety can be ensured before flab casting.

BUET team is now collecting samples from various parts of the age-old building, Mr Anwar said.

"For safety, we should carry out BUET test, for which they have been collecting samples of the abandoned building. We will see the strength of the structure before we go for flab casting," he said. The construction of the market will be completed hopefully by June 2018 with new contract of electrical work.

Previously, there was consultant and civil contractors, but no electrical contractor.

The chief engineer, however, could not confirm how much investment was so far made in the market. Despite several phone calls and SMS, no representative of the engineering department confirmed the investment figure.

After getting land, the then undivided DCC conducted a probe by a committee approved by the corporation to prepare a list of the affected-traders of three associations including New Society Traders Cooperative Association, 11 No. Section Traders Multipurpose Cooperative Society Ltd and New Society Market Committee.

In the list prepared between 1984 and 2004, there were the names of 1,975 affected-traders who paid partial 'salami' to the then city corporation.

The DNCC revenue office told the FE that if any allottee submits the documents beyond the list of 1,984 traders, the present shop allotment committee will consider it.

But the rate of every square feet space will be fixed after completion of the market.

Revenue department source also confirmed that the undivided city corporation authority took salami from 2,322 allottees and DNCC from 41 allottees, totalling 2,363. The full salami will be accepted after fixation of the space rate.

At present, there are 580 shops on the ground floor while 342 on the first floor, 342 on the second floor, 366 on the third floor, 366 on the fourth floor, 366 shops on the fifth floor and a canteen on the sixth floor.

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