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Land grabbing

9 February 2005, 18:00 PM
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
By Tapader Md Khalilur Rahman Rokeya Sarani Mirpur, Dhaka-1215
9 February 2005, 18:00 PM
If wealth and property are kept unguarded, the thieves will steal those. Blame, then, is not to be put on the thieves, but on the negligence, indifference or failure to keep those under constant watch. The water bodies are public property . The government is the custodian and trustee of those properties . The administration should look after and utilise public properties appropriately. Trespassers are liable to be immediately prosecuted under the law of the land. Land grabbers do not construct a building or a shed over night. They do it as we know without any resistance.

They use it for profit making for months or years. During this long period, the custodians, trustees and the watchdogs are found to be in a state of hibernation. They wake up in certain cases (not in all cases) and demolish the constructions. Again after some days the greedy land grabbers occupy the land and start construction. This hide and seek game we are noticing for a pretty long time.

We suggest the following to set things right.

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i) Demolish all illegal structures.

ii) File cases against the unauthorised occupants immediately after demolition.

iii) Claim profit money from the occupants .

iv) Claim costs of demolition.

If cases are filed and the greedy persons are arrested and brought before a fair trial, they will be disciplined to a great extent. Only demolition is not the "answer" to this "cancer." They occupy public land, construct buildings on it and they get back their capital with huge profit during the period from construction to demolition. Meanwhile, some innocent persons who offer "salami" and rent incur losses. The environment also incurs loss. Public interest is hurt in a palpable manner. Therefore not only demolition but some other measures and remedies require to be considered.