RAJUK's missing files: Experts must investigate
It is a matter of grave concern that files of around 30 thousand applicants regarding approval for building construction, have gone missing from the server of RAJUK, the government agency for development of the capital city. According to a Prothom Alo report, though the RAJUK officials came to know about this on 6 December, they did not take any action even until this Thursday. Senior system analyst Kazi Mohammad Mahabubul Huq told Prothom Alo that they were trying to retrieve the lost files. They have filed a general diary (GD) with the police station in this connection. When the files of 30 thousand applicants have gone missing from the server, simply filing a GD attempting to retrieve the files is not enough.
A land use clearance certificate and construction permit is required from RAJUK if any building is to be construction in an area under RAJUK's jurisdiction. This task would previously be carried out in the conventional manner. Then in 2016, RAJUK started issuing the clearance certificate online, but only in one zone (Zone-5) of its eight zones in the capital. In 2018 the land use clearance certificate for all zones began to be issued online. Then in May 2019, alongside the land use clearance certificate, RAJUK also began providing the construction permit online too.
RAJUK has lost these files of 30 thousand applicants at a time when it was involved in negotiations with building owners over the implementation of DAP. The government on 23 August approved of RAJUK's Detailed Area Plan (DAP) for Dhaka city. This would mean that the land owners will have to construct buildings at a lower height than before in most of the areas under RAJUK. Later, on the basis of appeals from the land owners and housing businesses, RAJUK decided that those who had applied for land use clearance certificate before 23 August, would be able to construct buildings as per the previous rules.
A day after a notification was published in this regard on 4 December, RAJUK's website concerning building construction mysteriously was down. Does that mean certain vested quarters intentionally incapacitated the website to show certain applications were made before 23 August? The persons who have lost their files had applied for building construction approval from May 2019 till 6 December of this year. These persons may face all sorts of sufferings due to these important files going missing. After all, any person or company requires RAJUK's clearance certificate to get a bank loan against any land or buildings.
An expert level committee must be formed to investigate whether these important files have gone missing due to any technological glitch or has this been an intentional manipulation by vested quarters. Assistance may be taken in this regard from teachers of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET).
A former professor of BUET was on the inquiry committee regarding the Bangladesh Bank reserve fund heist. In such incidents, the government agencies form committees as mere eyewash and submit a perfunctory report. The truth remains concealed and the guilty persons remain out of the scene. This must in no way be repeated in the case of RAJUK's 30 thousand missing files.