The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

Thirty more organisations and individuals Saturday donated about Tk 1.85 crore to the Chief Adviser's Relief and Welfare Fund for the country's cyclone victims. The organisations and individuals are Karnaphuli Fertilizer Co Ltd Tk 1,54,61,427, Bangladesh Supreme Court Tk 2.82 lakh, teachers and students of Khulna Medical college Tk 1,21,700, Citi Bank NA and Citi group Tk 10 lakh, Association of Cargo Agents of Bangladesh Tk 3 lakh, Hamdard Laboratories Tk 5 lakh, Bangladesh Scientific Equipment Trading Association Tk 2.16 lakh, Arshad Memorial Trust Tk 3 lakh, Mahbub Mawdudur Rahman and Saima Rahman Tk 10,000, M/S Gani Brothers Tk 20,000, Modern Dyeing and Screen Printing Ltd Tk 27,000, RM Enter Owners Cooperative Society Tk 25,580, one day's salary (Tk 11,856) of Rajshahi district council staff, United Lubricants, Multipurpose Cooperative Society Tk 10,000 and freedom fighter Mahbubul Alam Tk 10,000.

Besides, Shibpur Union Hefazate Islam Jubo Sangha, B'baria donated Tk 2,000 while Imon Telecom (Pvt) Ltd Tk 5,000, Begum Nilufa Yasmin Tk 2,000, Noor Mahal Tk 5,000, Dr Golam Farooq Tk 1,000, M Obaidur Rahman Tk 20,000, Kazi Maqbul Hossain Tk 22,000, M Sajjadul Karim Tk 10,000, M Golam Tayeb Tk 2,000, Mujgunni Residential Area Welfare Association, Khulna Tk 17,350, Noakhali Swapnil Krira Chakra Tk 50,000, one day's salary (Tk 27,196) of teachers and staff of Noakhali Science and Technology University, Golam Mawla Tk 5,000, Abdul Wahab Tk 900 and a man unwilling to be named Tk 20,000.

UNB, Dhaka

Citi Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Citigroup, has donated US$ 50,000, equivalent to around Taka 34 lakh, in support of the cyclone victims of the coastal areas of the country. This fund will be used by Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) for their relief efforts towards the Sidr victims.

As yet another avenue to mobilize global support, Citibank N.A. Bangladesh has opened an account in the name of Chief Advisor's Relief Fund, where people from all around the world can send their contributions for the cyclone-affected people.

Besides, the employees of Citibank have made monetary contribution, which is matched equally by Citibank, to donate Tk one Million to the Chief Adviser's Relief and Welfare Fund.

Citibank employees have also formed a volunteer team, which will work at the cyclone-affected areas for smooth distribution of all collections, said a press release.

Staff Reporter

Exhibition on various memorable items of Shaheed Janani Jahanara Imam began at the Dhaka University Central Student Union (DUCSU) yesterday.

Acting Vice Chancellor of Dhaka University and also its Treasurer Prof Syed Abul Kalam Azad inaugurated the exhibition as chief guest.

The exhibition includes various memorable items, documents and pictures of her family, movements and her great son martyr Shafi Imam Rumi.

Besides, her composed book named Ekattarar Dinguli, used clothes, optical, last letter written to the country's people, posters of movement against Ghatak-Dalal, leaflets of Shaheed Janani Jahanara Imam Memorial Museum, picture and short biography of Rumi.

Sanzida Rahman, Prashanta Karmakar and Susmita Sikdar, representatives of Jahanara Imam Memorial Museum, Towhid Rezanur of Projanma-71, Nicolas Westmore of UK, businessman Abu Jar Jillur, Gopal Chandra Das, historical signs collector of DUCSU, among others, were present at the inaugural session.

It may be mentioned that, earlier, the Shaheed Janani Jahanara Imam Memorial Museum handed over her memorable items and documents to the DUCSU collection home.

Sheikh Arif Bulbon

Although it is required by the law, the government agencies hardly ever obtain planning and design approval from the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) for construction of buildings.

Any private or government organisations or individuals have to obtain this approval before construction of buildings. But the RAJUK Chairman KAM Haroon said that it is a common practice of the government agencies that they do not apply for such permission.

He said, "None of the government buildings has design approval from the RAJUK. But the government has no plan yet to take legal actions against such buildings." The Town Improvement (TI) Act of 1953 requires agencies or individuals to obtain planning approval (land use clearance) and the Building Construction (BC) Act of 1952 asks builders to obtain construction approval from the RAJUK.

Moreover, through an amendment to the BC Act in 1987, it was made mandatory for buildings of any government or private organisation to obtain building approval with only exception in the Cantonment Area for security and strategic reasons.

The Public Works Department (PWD) is now implementing a scheme to build 17 buildings in Nakhalpara area in the city. None of the six-storey buildings, now under construction, has either planning or construction approval from the RAJUK.

The Public Works Ministry is the guardian of both the said laws on building rules and codes under the BC Act.

Meanwhile, the RAJUK in recent times has been very active in taking strict actions against the unauthorised private buildings and punishing the delinquent building owners. One example is the 15-storey BGMEA building built on the Begunbari canal area without building approval.

RAJUK served several notices with financial penalty and asked for partial demolition of the building. BGMEA paid the approval fees at the penalty rate but the matter is still unsettled.

Prof Nazrul Islam, an urban expert, said the government agencies also have to obtain building approval as per the existing law. But certain organisations like PWD that has engineering division of their own, may be exempted from the legal obligation only in respect of construction of a building.

"But all must obtain planning approval from RAJUK. Otherwise, it will create problem with the city's proper planning and environment," he said.

In addition to the TI Act and BC acts, Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) also requires approval from a RAJUK official for the construction of a building.

According to the BNBC, professionals including civil engineers, architects and planners involved with any construction work will remain legally liable and answerable for any lapses in discharging their professional responsibility.

The Building Construction Act of 1952, through amendment in February 2006, clearly provides for penalty for the violators of the building codes and rules.

It provides that whoever commits an offence by breaking the provision of Section No 3 of the Act or by failing to fulfil any of the directions given by an authorised officer or a committee under relevant sections shall be punishable under this section with fine no less than Tk 50,000 or both.

Meanwhile, a PWD official said that they just play the role of a builder.

ASM Ismail, Chief Architect of the Department of Architecture, said that the department prepares architectural design of any project in compliance with the existing planning rules and building code.

"Approval of planning and structural designs are obtained by organisations or individuals for their own interest for the construction of a building," he said.