Working for years at risky rented building

As Nagarkanda municipality has no building of its own since its establishment in 1999, the municipality has been running its activities in a decrepit rented house for years amid risk.

Meanwhile, there should have been 72 staffers in the municipality but it is now running with only eight permanent and 10 temporary employees. As a result, people of the municipality have been deprived of getting proper service.

Nagarkanda municipality was formed in 1999, comprising nine wards from Nagarkanda and Laskardia unions, which is covering the area of 7.58 square km.

The then LGED and Cooperatives Minister Zillur Rahman laid its foundation stone on February 19 in 1999, but the municipality has no building of its own till now, said sources at the municipality.

The activities of the municipality started in a monthly rented one-storey building of Faridpur Zilla Parishad. At the beginning the municipality paid rent for three years. After that, no money has been paid for the rented house in the last 18 years.

On a recent visit, this correspondent found the mayor alone with four employees of the municipality working in the risky building. The rod in the front part of the building was seen. Cracks developed in different places of the building.

With plasters falling off the walls and ceilings, the building now gives a pitiable look.

Malay Kanti Biswas, 19, a new voter of the municipality, said they have to wait for long to get any service due to lack of manpower at the municipality.

Sajita Biswas, 22, a resident of Modhajagdia area in the municipality, said as the area's drainage system is very poor, the whole area goes under water due to heavy rains during monsoon.

Mizan Babu, a resident of the municipality, said they have been deprived of getting proper service for the last two decades due to manpower crisis at the municipality.

Nimay Sarkar, acting mayor of the municipality, said they want to give all kind of service to the citizens of the municipality, but they cannot do it due to manpower shortage.

They have already bought 52 decimals of land for construction of the municipality building, he said.

Sarkar hopes that two years after construction of the building, they can shift there.