City expands but municipality boundaries remain unchanged
Graphics: Agamir Somoy
The city of Sreemangal in Moulvibazar has expanded far beyond the boundaries of the municipality. New residential areas, hotels, resorts and businesses have emerged. The population and movement of people have also increased. Yet the municipality’s area has not expanded in nearly 90 years since its establishment in 1935.
Residents of large areas surrounding the city that have effectively become part of Sreemangal are not receiving municipal services because the municipality remains confined to a small area of 2.58 square kilometers. Several initiatives have been taken to expand its boundaries but none have been implemented.
Municipal residents said people visit Sreemangal throughout the year because of tourism, the tea industry and trade and commerce. Businesses have developed around tea gardens, hills, forests, lakes and tourist attractions. Many people have also moved here permanently from different parts of the country for employment and business. This has increased pressure on the city’s population and infrastructure but efforts to expand the municipal boundaries have remained stalled for years.
According to municipal data, the population of the municipal area was around 2,000 when it was established in 1935. It has now increased to around 40,000. The municipality was upgraded to a first-class municipality on February 4, 2002. However, its area has not increased.
The municipality currently has nine wards with around 2,600 holdings. Its annual revenue from its own sources is around Tk 3.5 crore. To provide civic services, it has around 28 kilometers of roads, 35 kilometers of drains, 675 streetlights and 2,300 water connections.
Although the municipal area has remained unchanged, several areas of surrounding unions have effectively become connected to the city. Residents of these areas are involved in the city’s business and civic life. However, as they remain administratively under union parishads, they face problems with roads, drains, waste removal, streetlights and other services.
Kopil Kuri, a resident of the Sabujbagh area, said they use almost all facilities available in the city. However, they are considered union residents when it comes to civic services. Problems with roads, drains, streetlights and waste removal have continued for years. He hopes that expanding the municipal boundaries will create an opportunity to resolve these problems.
Piyash Das, a member of Ward 4 of Sreemangal Sadar Union, said Sabujbagh in his area has now effectively become part of the city. However, because it remains under the union, the area receives limited allocations compared with its needs. As a result, there are shortages in roads, drains, streetlights, water and waste management.
The initiative to expand the boundaries of Sreemangal Municipality is not new. According to municipal sources, a gazette was published on the matter in 1981. Initiatives were also taken in 1996 and 2001. However, none of them were ultimately implemented.
In 2015, two people filed a writ petition with the High Court seeking expansion of the municipal boundaries. Following the court’s directives, the expansion process began. However, the process did not reach its final stage after passing through various administrative steps.
Most recently, the municipality sent a fresh expansion proposal to the district administration office on July 19. The proposal was later sent to the Ministry of Local Government.
The proposal calls for several mouzas and villages including Rupaspur, Bharauড়া, Suinagar, Phulchhara, Bhurbhuria, Ramnagar and Uttar Sur under Sreemangal Sadar, Kalighat and Ashidron unions to be included in the municipality.
If the proposal is approved, the municipal area will increase from 2.58 square kilometers to 9.52 square kilometers. The population could reach around 100,000 and the number of wards could increase to between 12 and 14.
The pressure on waste management is also increasing as the city expands and the number of people visiting the city grows. The municipal authorities said an initiative was taken in 2017 to purchase 2.43 acres of land in the Jetty Road area for Tk 1.84 crore and construct a dumping station. However, work on the project has been suspended following a court order because of a case filed with the High Court.
Alternative arrangements for environmentally friendly waste management and a suitable location are currently being sought.
Sreemangal Upazila Nirbahi Officer and municipal administrator Md. Ziaur Rahman said that although nearly 90 years have passed since the municipality was established in 1935, its area has remained unchanged. During this period, the population, movement of people and important facilities have increased. Therefore, expanding the municipal boundaries is necessary to ensure public services.
“Although initiatives were taken several times in the past, they were not implemented. This time, a new proposal has been sent to the government after collecting the opinions of local people and the necessary documents,” he said.
The municipal administrator hopes the proposal will be approved after verification and review.
