Rules are for breaking!

Sir. This refers to one of your most interesting reports In SAVE DHAKA published on 25 April. I would like to draw, through this column, the attention of Rajuk authorities to the following difficult situation I am faced with.

I have a piece of land by the side of a 12-feet by-lane of Kalabagan area in the city. The plot is 50-feet in length on the lane side and 40-feet in breadth. It measures less than three kathas.

In order to follow the rules of Rajuk (as mentioned in your report) I need to leave approximately 15-feet (4.5 metres) on the roadside which means a total of 750-sft (15X50). On all three other sides, according to Rajuk. the vacant space (1,75 metres on each side) will account for 715-sft. Thus out of

my 2000 Ml. I will Ih* required to spare a total of 1465 sft and build my house on a space of 535-sft only. Is it a practical proposition? Is it a rule to be followed?. Can I afford to go along Rajuk rules? Can Rajuk suggest me -as to how to plan a house on my plot?

Your report reveals that one of the highly placed Rajuk official has confessed that 99 per cent of houses in the city are built without following Rajuk rules. This brings forth the following points: What are the responsibilities of the Rajuk au' thotities? The answer is: to ensure that construction in the city area are carried out according1 to Rajuk rules. Are they doing it properly? If 99 per cent do not follow rules then one can safely reach at a conclusion that Rajuk officials are not doing their duties at all. Are they being paid for their Jobs which are not done

at all? The answer is yes. of course.

It is alleged that Rajuk engineers are looked after for not doing their jobs properly. Would the situation be much different had there been no Rajuk?

There is no rules in Jungle. But animals still manage to live in it. Had there been no Rajuk. we the citizens of this metropolis could find out a means of constructing our houses which would in no case could be worse than the present state of affairs. We could rather get an additional dividend by not specially treating’ the Rajuk engineers.

Aft Reza Bakhtier 64 North Road DhanmoruU. Dhaka

Water crisis

Sir. It is water, water everywhere. but not a drop to drink! In oil rich Arab coun-

tries there is no scarcity of petroleum. But in our land of rivers and rivulets there Is water crisis.

Our capital city Dhaka is surrounded by numerous big and small rivers. Does it not look funny that we are faced with water scarcity? We wonder what our policy makers, planners, engineers and the WASA officials have been doing for the last two decades? From time to time they simply re port system loss and raise the rate of water tariff.

If we set up 5-6 water purifying plants near river and rivulet sources around our city, for supply and distribution of water areawise, this would be more feasible and less expensive than carrying out constant repair of the deep tubewells and still having an erratic water supply.

OH Kabir

Dhaka1203