The industries, mostly readymade garments set up in last eight years, are also facing multiple problems including electricity, transportation and security of workers, resulting in hampering production in these industries with around five lakh workers.

In absence of drainage system, the industry owners drain out the wastewater and other wastes into underground tanks. But the tanks often overflow, causing serious health and environment hazards in Ashulia, Zirabo, Yearpur, Dhamsona and adjacent areas under Savar upazila.

Wastewater running into cultivated lands in these areas is hampering crop production.

There is no fire service station in the large industrialised area.

Lack of wide roads for plying of heavy vehicles including trucks and lorries carrying garment goods and other machinery adds to the problem of the industries.

Lack of streetlights poses threats of insecurity and accidents at night, especially for the garment workers.

Han-Hong, a Korean investor who set up two garments at Zirabo, said they are badly facing sewerage and drainage problems in their industrial areas where there is not a single drain to pass out the industry wastes.

Han, managing director of Haesong Korea Limited and HS Korea Limited, said due to inadequate supply of electricity in the areas production is badly hampered. The Korean entrepreneur urged the government to solve these problems for industrial expansion in the area.

Both local entrepreneurs and foreign investors have demanded that the government immediately declare the industrialised area an 'ideal industrial city' and a municipality.

The industries are contributing a lot to the country's economy and playing important role in socio-economic development of the area.

They also put several demands including immediate solution of drainage problems, road development, setting up of gas line and assurance of its supply, improvement of security with additional police patrol, setting up of a fire station and street lights in all the roads and lanes.

Abdus Salam Murshedy, managing director of Envoy Group, said though they have maintained international standard in setting up industries in these areas with modern equipment and facilities for the workers, they are facing shortage of workers due to lack of adequate domestic gas line in those areas.

"The workers are less interested to live in these areas due to absence of gas facilities and we have to bring workers from the capital, which adds to the costs," Salam, also a vice-president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGEMA), said.

NM Ziaul Haque, another local entrepreneur, said due to lack of infrastructure development in these areas, the industries could not flourish fast. Saying that the government is earning around Tk 4 crore per month as revenue, Ziaul, also managing director of Mascot Plaza Ltd said the government should look into their problems and take immediate steps to solve them.

"We are getting only five megawatt electricity for around 300 industries and most of the daytime we have to witness load shedding. We run our industries with the help of backup generator," said M Siddiqur Rahman, chairman of Sterlings Apparels Limited at Zirabo.

Despite investing a huge amount of money, they are not getting facilities of infrastructure development there, he added.