With DCC at the helm of lake management, it is now struggling to realise over Tk 3 crore from the defiant lessees as most of them have not paid rent and maintenance charges for a period between 19 to 37 months.

DCC divided the area into seven sectors and leased them out to five companies for different periods after Dhanmondi Lake area development project was completed in 2001.

Although DCC held on to the maintenance, security and gardening, it later assigned a private company to take care of their work with the lessees bearing the costs of the jobs done.

But none of the lessees paid this maintenance cost to DCC, which is apparently reluctant to take any action against the defaulters.

An emergency fund was created with the one-time lease money to be spent for future renovation and development of the lake area.

But over Tk 1 crore from this fund had to be paid to the private company for the security, maintenance and gardening as DCC has not been able to realise dues from the land owners, leaving the coffers empty.

High officials of DCC said they were helpless and were bound to pay the bill to the assigned company as per contract.

"As we could not collect the money from the lessees we had to use the money from that fund. Once the lessees pay us we will reimburse the amount taken from the fund," said Saifuddin Ahmed, DCC's chief executive officer (CEO).

DCC is also silent on the lessees' deviation from the lake's main design in putting up a number of structures violating the contract.

Sector 1 (beside Dhanmondi road-27) was supposed to consist of a swimming pond, a health club and food kiosk. The pond has turned into a fishery and a makeshift restaurant has been set up at the place designated for the health club.

Rickshaw-pullers and day labourers take food daily in a corner of the lake while food is cooked in a shed in another corner making the entire area shabby.

The lessees, Mosharraf Hossain, owner of Mosharraf Swimming Centre, and Rani Padamsee of Bengal School of Sutokan, have left the country after illegally handing over the property to Hamid Real Estate Company.

They have not paid the rent or maintenance charges to DCC for the last 53 months and the total amount due is now is over Tk 57 lakh.

"We are just supervising the area on behalf of the lessees. We have not started the pool and health club projects as the DCC has not settled the rent and maintenance cost," said Jasim Mahbub, executive officer, Hamid group.

According to the contract between DCC and lessees, the latter is bound to pay Tk 40,000 as monthly rent.

"We won't pay the rent till DCC fixes the problem regarding the maintenance charge," said Mahbub.

DCC involved itself in a legal complication that it recently won although there is no obligation to evicting the lessee.

A similar anarchy is prevailing with other sectors. A few lessees are paying the monthly rent but refusing to pay maintenance charges.

Sector 2, 4 and 5 (Dhanmondi 8 to Dhanmondi 32) is leased out to a company Chilies Monami JV. The lessee has constructed five unauthorised cottages deviated from the main design.

The existing dues from Chilies Monami are around Tk 1.5 crore in monthly rent and maintenance charge.

"DCC hasn't provided us with utility services as per contract," said Abul Hossain Kabir, lessee of section 2, 4 and 5. "This inconvenience stalled our business and without business, it is not possible to pay them."

Regarding the construction of structures outside the main design he said he had sent the plans of these cottages to DCC before the structures came up, but did not receive any response from them.

"We sent DCC a final letter informing them that if they did not respond we would assume that they had no objection in such buildings and would go ahead with the constructions. Since we did not receive any response, we went ahead with our plan," said Kabir.

Among the other lease owners the Chandrima and Swapnapuri JV (lease owner of section 3) owe a total of Tk 40 lakh, Hamid Real Estate and Chamdrima JV (lease owner of section 6) owe Tk 30 lakh and Dynamic Ltd (lease owner of section 7) owes Tk 31 lakh.

Although the contract empowers DCC to cancel the contract if the second party does not pay the monthly rent or maintenance charge for a month within the 7th day of the next month, DCC did not take any action.

DCC officials said they terminated the contracts with three lessees who later obtained a stay order from the court.

"We won the legal battle recently and we will evict them. To collect dues we are preparing to file certificate cases against them," said the DCC CEO.