Fifty-five-year-old Badul Begum has been living with her grandson and his wife in a slum near Baunia Embankment in Dhaka for the last 30 years.
They, along with 299 other fellow slum dwellers and their families from the same Mirpur-11 locality, were allotted flats in three newly-built apartment blocks in August 2021.
The project, commissioned by the National Housing Authority or NHA, was launched in line with the National Housing Policy-2016 to solve the housing crisis for slum dwellers in the capital.
Badul, however, is not keen on moving into the shiny new buildings even after paying Tk 9,000 as security deposit after being allotted a flat.
Why?
“I can’t afford it now. I no longer work due to health complications, and my grandson is the sole breadwinner in the house. Since the budget is tight, we are not going there.’
These flats have two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom with state-of-the-art facilities. Each apartment block has an individual community hall, two elevators, solar power panels, an electricity generator substation, wide walkways, etc.
The authorities believed that it would be a dream come true for the slum dwellers, who were lucky enough to find a decent place to live.
It is learned that other things were not considered before allotment.
The rent was fixed at Rs 4,500 per month, excluding gas, electricity, water and service charges. With inflation and price hikes, each family now has to pay around 10,000 taka per month to live in a flat.
300 families lived rent-free in their slums, and were under the impression that they were being “rehabilitated” rather than given a place to live with good amenities at low rents.
Secondly, service charges for security, lift and general electricity usage were fixed at Rs 1,400, on top of individual gas, water and electricity charges.
Many slum dwellers said that the 1,500 taka on top of the personal utility fee was the last straw that killed their backs.
Some also pointed fingers at the rising prices of LP gas, which residents must subscribe for for cooking, if they opt to move into flats.
In slums, as Badul described, they never use LPG-powered chulhas because of the cost. Instead, they buy firewood or collect twigs to cook in traditional home chulhas.