Over 300 acres of CPA land occupied

It has 2302.84 acres of land excluding 97 acres, now under the control of Bangladesh Railway and 117 acres of alluvial land at Mazhercharr.

With 594 acres of the total land being gravelly or sandy, CPA has 1708.63 acres of land for setting up different installations or other purposes.

But, of the usable lands, CPA has only 952.93 acres under its direct possession while some 307 acres under illegal occupation of different government, semi government, non-government organisations and individual encroachers, said sources at CPA.

CPA magistracy recovered some 80 acres of valuable land, out of over 150 acres, from the encroachers during its eviction drives in the recent years.

The magistracy in a drive recovered 22.775 acres of land from the encroachers at Laldiarchar of Patenga last year.

Later, the recovered land was leased out for installation of container freight station, supply base station, Inland Container Depot (ICD) or port shipping related industries to private sector on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis.

Besides, the magistracy also recovered 23 acres of land, out of 97 acres under the occupation of Bangladesh Railway, in September 2004.

Of the land, some 14 acres was used for rehabilitating the families affected following acquisition of land for construction of New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT).

Non-recovery of 23 acres of land from railway might have delayed the NCT project by several years, sources said.

At present CPA has some 72 acres of its land in illegal possession of different firms and local encroachers. Of them, 64 acres are at old airport adjoining Laldiar Char, sources said.

It will launch a drive to recover rest of the land at Laldiarchar soon, sources said.

Different trade union organisations and CBA of Chittagong port have also occupied around two acres of land setting up structures to house offices, libraries or clubs.

To recover the land, CPA has planned to relocate these organisations to a multistoried building instead of evicting them.

An initiative was also taken to set up the multi-story building in 2002, in this regard.

Site plan of the building is under process for approval, sources said.

A total of 232 acres of land is under the capture of different government and semi-government organisations or agencies.

Of them, Department of Forest has occupied the highest quantity of 75.70 acres of land under coastal afforestation programme at Mazher Char.

Chittagong district administration is the second in the race occupying 72.28 acres of land ---72 acres for a Guchchha Gram project at Mazher Char and 0.28 acres (Rahmat Building) at Sadarghat Manoharkhali area.

Besides, Bangladesh Navy using over 59 acres of land illegally at different areas of south Halishahar, south Patenga and north Patenga.

Bangladesh Railway is the fourth in the race keeping Agrabad Debha (lake) on 16.16 acres of land under its capture at Goshiledanga, CPA sources said.

Bangladesh Water Development Board occupied 5.51 acres of land at different areas of south Patenga, port and Rangadia while Chittagong City Corporation 0.053 acres at Madhyam (middle) Halishahar, they said.