Project area includes flood flow zone

Tawfique Ali

The proposed site of the Army Housing Scheme in Rupganj includes designated flood flow zone, water bodies and rural homesteads, where no construction or earth-filling is permitted by the Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan.

The project covers 24 moujas of Rupganj and Kayetpara unions lying between the Balu and Shitalakkhya rivers.

Of the total area of the 24 moujas, 65 percent is flood flow zone, 12 percent water bodies and 13 percent rural settlements, show documents of the development plan.

A canal flows from Beraid to Dakshin Nabagram across the proposed site in Rupganj upazila of Narayanganj, where the army plans to implement a 12,000-bigha housing project.

The AHS authority did not consult Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk), the custodian of the Detailed Area Plan (DAP), about the project although it was obligated to do so in line with the Private Housing Development Rules, 2004, said Rajuk Chairman Md Nurul Huda.

Housing project in any flood flow zone is not permissible, he said.

Asked why Rajuk did not stop the army's move to go ahead with the project, Nurul Huda said the AHS authority did not even approach Rajuk for consultation, let alone seeking Rajuk's approval.

Thousands of villagers fought pitched battles with law enforcers on October 23 over "forced purchase of land" for the proposed project.

Around 1,400 bighas of land has been purchased so far for the project since September, says Rupganj sub-registrar's office.

Prof Nazrul Islam, urban researcher and chairman of the University Grants Commission, said it is Rajuk's duty to prevent any violation of the DAP.

Shaheenul Islam, director of Inter Services Public Relations, said he was unaware about the status of the project.

The army had set up a company and got it registered with the registrar of joint stock companies to implement the project.

But it did not get registered with Rajuk, which is mandatory for any company that falls within Rajuk's jurisdiction, he said.

Noted economist and environmentalist Prof Muzaffer Ahmad said alteration of flood flow zone would have an adverse effect on conservation of water bodies, river and bio-diversity.

It would increase vulnerability to urban flooding, hinder percolation of ground water level and escalate river pollution, he said.

Prof Ahmad said the land proposed for the project is not alterable for any housing project according to housing rules, laws on conservation of wetland and environment, and the Detailed Area Plan of Dhaka.

"The army may purchase lands in flood flow zone but the wetland conservation act does not allow it to alter the nature of the land," said Prof Ahmad.

"The use of army camps to initiate a housing project is an example of abuse of power and influence," he said.

Two other private housing projects in flood flow zones contributed to water logging in the capital, he said.

Prof Sarwar Jahan, president of Bangladesh Institute of Planners, said if a flood flow zone is used for a housing project, it would hamper urban planning and environmental conservation.

Syeda Rizwana Hasan, chief executive of Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association, said if the project is implemented, it would diminish the floodplains of the Shitalakkhya river and contribute to water logging in Dhaka city.

The river would also lose its natural capacity to dissolve pollutants, said Rizwana, who was member of the review committee on DAP.

A housing project in a flood flow zone would set a very bad example in respect of the rule of law, she added.

The Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan (DMDP) designates the area as flood flow zone for controlling pollution in Shitalakkhya river and protecting it as a viable alternative source of potable water for Dhaka city.

Both the DAP and the DMDP on an 1,528 square kilometre area strictly prohibit implementation of any housing project in water bodies, rural homesteads and flood flow zone that facilitates movement of water during monsoon.

According to private housing rules, any initiator of a proposal for a housing project has to consult Rajuk's four-member committee about the proposed project, said officials of Rajuk's town planning section.

The committee looks into authorised use and ownership of land, the physical state of a site, and makes recommendations whether the project is permissible or not.

The project's initiator submits detailed layout of the proposed project only if the committee gives its opinion in favour of the proposal.

The Rajuk then forwards it to the national committee, headed by the state minister for housing and public works, for final approval.

Lt General Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan, quartermaster general of Bangladesh Army, is the chairman of the proposed project and Brig Gen Nasimul Goni the managing director.

When this correspondent tried to reach Brig Nasimul for comment, an officer at the Military Intelligence Wing said they would later brief the media about the issue.