Market at the cost of ponds

Three government ponds are being filled in Tangail's Santosh area for constructing a market in place of the kitchen market established by legendary political leader Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani.

Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University and Tangail Municipality have signed a mutual understanding (MoU) in this regard.

Locals and traders of the kitchen market yesterday formed a human chain in front of the market located beside the Tangail-Charabari road in front of the university, protesting the move.

Speakers at the human chain alleged that Maulana Bhasani constructed the kitchen market in 1975 after taking the land's lease from the Roads and Highways Department (RHD), keeping the interest of the locals in mind.

Currently, around 500 people, including shop owners and street vendors, are solely dependent on their earnings from the market.

The municipality, however, has plans to construct a two-story concrete market in place of the kitchen market. They have already started filling the ponds behind the land, defying environmental laws, claimed locals.

The municipality has already started taking substantial amounts of money from different parties, assuring them of their shops in the market. The university authorities also joined hands with the municipality as part of their bid to remove all memorabilia of Bhasani from Santosh, according to locals' allegations.

Speakers addressing the human chain said of the shopkeepers, at least 32 are poor tea vendors and 10 are people with disabilities. "What will happen to their lives?" they asked.

Earlier, they submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner in Tangail to stop the market construction bid and sent the copies to different offices, including RHD and the Department of Environment (DoE).

Azad Khan Bhasani, grandson of Maulana Bhasani, said his grandfather, a prominent political personality in the country, named the kitchen market after his spiritual guru Peer Shahjaman. "The proposed name of the new market building to be constructed is Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University Market," he said.

Asked, Prof Md Farhad Hossain, vice-chancellor of MBSTU, said the kitchen market is situated on the road. "University students and teachers used to shop from the market. Accidents and causalities used to happen there."

"After the municipality mayor presented his proposal of constructing a concrete market building replacing the worn-out kitchen market, we formed a committee led by the university's treasurer to act in this regard," said the VC.

Later, a mutual understanding was established between the university and municipality on paper that the municipality will construct the market and the university will acquire 35 percent of its shares, while the municipality will acquire 65 percent. After 30 years, the university will get ownership of the part of the market which will be constructed on its land.

"We don't intend to destroy Bhasani's memorabilia. However, necessary infrastructure development is a timely need," added Prof Farhad.

When asked about the filling of ponds and rehabilitation of kitchen market traders, he suggested that this correspondent contact the municipality mayor in this regard.

However, this newspaper could not get the comments of Mayor SM Sirajul Haque Khan Alamgir, who is also the president of the AL town unit, as his private secretary informed that he will talk on this issue later.

Jamir Uddin, deputy director of DoE in Tangail, said he has already received a copy of the memorandum from the kitchen market's traders. "No one can fill any water bodies. It's a punishable offence under the environmental laws. If the allegations are found true, the DoE will sue them."

Although the protestors mentioned RHD as the owner of the said land, Aliul Hossain, executive engineer of Tangail RHD, said they have already handed over the road to the Local Government and Engineering Department (LGED). "Hence, the roadside land is also under the jurisdiction of LGED."

However, Rafiqul Islam, executive engineer of LGED in Tangail, said they have no documents for the roadside land's jurisdiction.

Contacted, Jasim Uddin Haider, deputy commissioner in Tangail, said he has received the memorandum from the traders of the kitchen market and directed the assistant commissioner (land) of Tangail Sadar upazila to check which office has the land's jurisdiction.