Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) has taken a master plan to set up a state-of-the-art business hub at Karwan Bazar in the capital city Dhaka. There are plans to remove the market and build seven-star hotels, entertainment centers, convention centers and indoor playgrounds on 12 bighas of land. The DNCC will issue bonds in the market to raise the required 6 to 7 thousand crore BDT. However, the big challenge in implementing this master plan is to move the Kacha Bazar.
Mr. Atiqul Islam said that there could
be no wholesale market inside the capital. Here extortion, illegal trade,
parking trade are all there. City Corporation also needs to take some
initiatives to transform Bangladesh into a developed country. Markets need to
be improved. The city corporation market in Gulshan-2 is risky. We will
demolish the existing structure and make DNCC city center on 9 bighas of land
there. 'He added,' In the planned city center at Gulshan-2, the people of the
city will be able to spend time with their families in a green tidy environment
for entertainment, shopping, eating and indoor games.
He also said, ‘following this, I have taken a plan to transform the market of Karwan Bazar into a business hub. There will be a cultural center, opera house, theater, seven star hotel, convention center, shopping mall, food court, indoor playground. It will be the heart of the capital. The plan will be implemented on 12 bighas of land in Karwan Bazarincluding the kacha bazar area. We will start working according to this plan by 2023.’
Regarding the plan to finance the
development work, Mayor Atiqul Islam said, "If the city corporation gives
the land to the developer for the development work, they want to give 30
percent to the city corporation with 70 percent." To solve this problem, I
have decided to release "municipal bonds" in the market to provide
funds for development. By raising money through this bond we will make modern
market, civic center, business hub. When it comes to buying bonds, people have
doubts about the company. But if the city corporation releases the bond, there
will be no doubt about getting the money back. We are trying to take it as a
test case and release a bond worth BDT 1,000 to 2,000 crore in December. There
are plans to issue bonds worth TK. 6,000-7,000 crore for the caravan market.
Professor Shibli Rubaiyat-ul-Islam, chairman of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), told Newspapers that raising funds for development through bonds is a new initiative. If the municipal bond is successful, the government will be able to take initiative to raise money through bonds in other development works. This will reduce the debt pressure on the government. Development work will not stop for foreign aid.
The economist Nazneen Ahmed said, "We want the country's bond market to develop. If people invest in bonds, they have to pay back with dividends. Bonds have some rules. Bonds can be issued in those cases where there will be profit. If DNCC collects money through bonds in accordance with the rules of Bangladesh Bank, it will be good.'
The big challenge in implementing the
plan to make Karwan Bazar a business hub is to move the raw materials market
(Kacha Bazar). This issue has been unresolved for a long time. The city
corporation has set up wholesale markets in Jatrabari, Gabtali and Mohakhali to
accommodate the traders of Karwan Bazar. The Executive Committee of the
National Economic Council (ECNEC) passed the 'Three Wholesale Raw Market
Construction Project in Dhaka City' on October 4, 2006. The project was
undertaken to improve the market and supply system of agricultural products as
well as to reduce traffic congestion in the Kawran Bazar. There were plans to
build these three wholesale Bazaars at Mohakhali, Aminbazar and Jatrabari. The
work was completed in June 2015 at a cost of around Tk 350 crore with a
three-point extension. The traders of Karwan Bazar had several meetings with
the previous late DNCC mayor Anisul Haque to remove the market in the newly
constructed area. But the raw market has not moved in six years.
Asked if removing the market is a challenge to create a business hub, DNCC Mayor Atiqul Islam said, "We have to implement this initiative for the development of the whole capital." We have had discussions with the traders of Kawwan Bazar. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has agreed to our initiative. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal an MP from the area, assured full cooperation in the initiative. COVID Hospital has been set up in the market built in Mohakhali. Now 860 shops will go from Karwan Bazar to Jatrabari Bazar and the rest will be taken to Gabtali Bazar. The traders will have the same size shop in the new kacha bazar same size of shops as the traders had in Karwan Bazaar. This will alleviate the traffic congestion in the Kawran Bazaar and turn the whole area into a scenic setting.
President of Karwan Bazar Small Kacha
Bazar Traders Multipurpose Association said that the wholesale markets in the
capital will be under the control of the city corporation. We expect everyone
to do business from there. But there are privately owned wholesale markets and
shops. The city corporation has no initiative to stop that. The traders have no
objection to go if there is a better system than the Karwan Bazar. Just a few
days after hearing the kacha bazar will move to Gabtali, Jatrabari.
Mayor Atiqul Islam said, "We have had a series of meetings with traders to move the Karwan Bazar" For a long time, they have been looking for a road behind the Gabtali Market to facilitate access to Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) land. Agriculture Ministry has become agreed. Now we will create a separate way to enter and exit the market as per the demand of the traders.
Minister of Agriculture Abdur Razzak
said, "We want to coordinate everything. The DNCC informed us that there
was a need for a road to and from Gabtali Market. Knowing that this road will
benefit the traders, we have given the land of BADC. Many times many good
initiatives do not see the light due to lack of coordination. We want to stand
by any good initiative with a big mentality in the interest of the state, in
the interest of the people.
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