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SYLHET, Feb 18: Sunamganj's Dowarabazar Upazila growth centre, built to be used as the commercial hub for the sale and marketing of kitchen and other items, remained non-operational for nearly two decades.
Sources said "over unknown reasons", the authorities had failed to launch operations at the centre, which features sheds, stalls and other infrastructures established through a Tk 1.0 million project. The long desired growth centre has dedicated space to wholesale vegetable, fish, and meat as well as a slaughter house. The centre also has toilets, two to three tubewell, a water tank and an electric pump. Besides, it has a women's corner to ensure their comfort.
Due to the defunct state of the centre, locals have to visit a kitchen market near the Sharifpur Bridge point in the upazila, contributing to traffic congestion in the area. Moreover, waste dumped near the market also causes inconvenience to the locals.
Some locals have been involved in illegal trade at the stalls under a shed in the growth centre as some young addicts occupied other unused stalls. Former Union Parishad chairman Abdul Bari said he attempted to start operations of the center, but it was not possible due to non-coopeartion of former Awami League leaders and the upazila administration.
An official at the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) said several attempts to start the centre failed in the past due to non-cooperation of local traders. He also said fish and vegetable traders "did not respond in the way they had to" to shift the existing kitchen market to the growth centre.
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