Naz Garden, 1st 3-star hotel of north Bangladesh, up for sale

The pandemic has ended up being the final nail in the coffin for Hotel Naz Garden in Bogura, the first three-star establishment of northern Bangladesh, with the owner putting it up for sale to end it from haemorrhaging money.

Recently Akij Group offered Tk 140 crore and sought a month's time to finalise the deal, owner Mohammad Shokrana, a veteran BNP leader who quit politics in 2019, told The Daily Star.

"Having continuously been incurring losses during the pandemic, I have decided to sell it. I wanted Tk 200 crore but did not get any buyer," he said.

That discussion was ongoing was confirmed by Dr Sheikh Mohiuddin, the eldest son of late Sheik Akij Uddin, founding chairman of the group.

On the price offer, Mohiuddin said what Shokrana quoted was not correct.

"We will make everything public once it is final. We have plans to start a medical college and hospital along with running the hotel differently," said Mohiddun, executive director of Ad-din Foundation, which runs eight hospitals and four medical colleges.

Akij Group is one of Bangladesh's largest business houses with diverse interests ranging from textiles, cement, ceramics, printing and packaging, hospitals, medical colleges, pharmaceuticals to food, beverages and consumer products.

There has been little achievement worth mentioning of the hotel although it had come into existence 16 years back on a recipe right for success.

Shokrana had initially planned building a motel but afterwards came to know that International Cricket Council (ICC) would declare a Bogura stadium as an international cricket venue.

The thought of international guests during matches got him to end up spending Tk 15 crore just a couple of kilometres away from Shaheed Chandu Stadium.

Sprawling across 15.11 acres of land, the hotel is located at Silimpur area on Bogra City Bypass at the heart of the district, some 192 kilometres away from Dhaka.

It offers an array of 94 rooms, gardens, a bar, four ballrooms, swimming pool and a lake 160 feet long and 60 feet wide.

"Later, the ICC officials visited my hotel and announced it an ICC venue hotel," said Shokrana.

But no international match has taken place there since 2006.

The hotel has made it thus far catering to guests including businesspeople, government officials and non-governmental officials (NGO).

Then another hotel of the same service and quality standards was built by NGO Thengamara Mohila Sabuj Sangha in the district, increasing the competition for guests.

"Due to the pandemic, we are incurring losses of Tk 2 lakh to Tk 3.5 lakh per day…I can't run this business anymore," said Skokrana.

On word going round that he was liquidating all assets over plans to go live with his elder son in Canada, Shokrana said it was all rumours.

Referring to a common perception that people abroad do their chores themselves, he said, "My age is now 72 years. Why will I be settling in Canada? To wash my own clothes at this old age?"