Bhaluka (Mymensingh) Correspondent: There have been allegations that cracks have appeared in various places in the building before the official inauguration of the much-awaited model mosque and Islamic cultural center in Bhaluka upazila of Mymensingh. This incident has created concern among local devotees and locals. They have demanded necessary renovations and technical investigation after checking the quality of the construction work.
Meanwhile, the upazila administration has formed a seven-member pre-inspection committee to check the defects before the mosque is handed over.
It was seen on the spot that there are signs of small and large cracks in the walls, plaster and various places of the mosque building. Locals complain that such a condition of the building even before the inauguration and full use has started, raising questions about the quality of the construction work.
Some local devotees said that the mosque built under this important government project is a great asset for the religious people of the area. Therefore, the issue of cracks appearing before the inauguration needs to be investigated seriously. They allege that after cracks appeared in various places, the contractor is trying to satisfy the verification committee by hastily carrying out scrubbing and repair work with some workers.
The project to build 560 model mosques and Islamic cultural centers is being implemented across the country under the Ministry of Religious Affairs. According to relevant sources, an average of 15 to 17 crore taka has been spent on the construction of each model mosque at the upazila level in this project, which is being implemented at a cost of about 9,435 crore taka, depending on the location and design.
The Bhaluka model mosque was built by Naima Enterprise. The three-storey building, built at a cost of 134,436,850 taka, has separate prayer facilities for men and women, an Islamic Foundation office, an Imam training center, training facilities for pilgrims, a library and opportunities for conducting mass education programs.
Although attempts were made to contact the concerned contractor and project officials several times, their statements could not be obtained.
Hatem Khan, a member of the verification committee and Bhaluka Municipality BNP convener, said that the quality of work is very poor. Cracks have appeared in various places in the building. Although a generator was supposed to be provided in the project, it was not provided. A Chinese company’s AC has been installed instead of a Japanese AC. In addition, low-quality wood has been used instead of teak wood doors.
Upazila Engineer Abu Bakar Siddique said that some defects including cracks were found in various places during an inspection with the committee members. The contracting company has been instructed to repair these defects. After correcting the defects, the report will be re-verified and if satisfactory, submitted to the Upazila Executive Officer.
Upazila Executive Officer (UNO) Md. Firoz Hossain said that an attempt was made to hand over the model mosque in a defective condition. But it was not accepted. Later, a seven-member pre-handover verification committee was formed with the Upazila Engineer as the head and the Islamic Foundation field supervisor as the member secretary.
Mymensingh Public Works Department Sub-Divisional Engineer Fahmid Iftekhar Ali said, an initiative was taken to hand over the mosque. However, as some defects were identified, the contractor has been instructed to rectify them quickly. Some time has been given due to Eid. After rectifying the defects, the mosque will be handed over to the appropriate authorities.
The locals demand that a quick technical investigation be conducted to ascertain the real cause of the cracks and necessary renovation work be completed to ensure the quality of construction of this important facility built with the people’s tax money.
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