Sarwaruddin, Ctg Bureau :
The declaration of the Commercial Capital(CC) is still confined within red- tape but no progress in implementation in fact is yet sighted while Chittagong is facing a number of problems since long.
The major problems of the port city are – water-logging, non-operation and complications of New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) , non-completion of Chittagong-Dhaka four lane highway,Chittagong – Dhaka double line rail track , initiatives for relocation of International Tea Auction centre from Chittagong, and procrastination of establishing Maritime University and relocation its venue from Chittagong to other place .
Chittagong is known as port city as well as principal business hub of the country which earns lion share of the national revenue but the problems yet to be mitigated .
City Corporation sources said, Govt is not providing adequate fund for the water-logging project but the ministers and MPs said, govt is providing requisite fund for water logging .
Even after light or moderate rainfall most of the areas of Bakalia , Naasirabad Housing society , Agrabad , Halishahar area go under knee to waist deep water and the city dwellers have to suffer miserably by flash flood accompanied with tidal water during high tide in sea.
Mentionable that the promise of for building Chittagong, the second largest city and port city of the country into Commercial Capital in a very planned manner, still remains unfulfilled .
Rather the port city has been losing its luster gradually , in view of building of the capital based industries bypassing original commitments and also of procrastination of the concerned authorities in development projects.
The past govt after assuming power in 1991 declared its policy to develop the port city as CC . This declaration raised expectation among local people but nothing was done to translate the promise into reality. Also the incumbent govt since its taking over responsibility of running the govt declared its intention on different occasions to transform Chittagong into CC. According to different sources , a number of important organizations have already been shifted their headquarters to Dhaka from Ctg.The move for shifting the Tea Board and the International Tea Auction centre from Chittagong to Sylhet zone already under process which may ruin the commitment of CC.
A number of multinational companies headquarters shifted from Chittagong to Dhaka after declaration of Chittagong as CC. These multinational companies are – Reckhit & Colman, Glaxo Bangladesh , Liver Brothers etc. There also rumors that headquarters of Bangladesh Shifipping
Corporation Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation will be transferred to capital city . At present , the chief boss of the BSC,BPC, TB reside in Dhaka and occasionally come to Chittagong for any special assignments.
Mentionable that the headquarters of Bangladesh Railway popularly known as CRB has been shifted to Dhaka creating two zones – East Zone and West Zone. At present the headquarters of East Zone located at Chittagong but the Director General of Bangladesh Railway functioning at Dhaka. It is to mention here that the railway headquarters of Assam Bengal railway and thereafter East Bengal railway was situated in Chittagong CRB building during British regime and after emergence of erstwhile East Pakistan , the headquarters of East Pakistan railway was functioning in Chittagong before emergence of Bangladesh. As such the importance of the port city gradually undermining which may hamper the building Chittagong as commercial capital. Different business circles are of the views that negligence of the past govts towards Chittagong , various conspiracies against Chittagong Port and above all the trend of shifting the headquarters of industries and organizations to Dhaka have brought a about stalemate in trade and commerce in the port city.
Chittagong chamber of commerce and industry sources said being a pioneer trade body of the country, they earlier demanded shifting of headquarters of a few commercial banks, insurance companies, office of the chief controller of imports and exports , ministry of commerce , ministry of ports and shipping in in Chittagong to fulfill the infrastructures of the Commercial Capital.
