Progress on the Jhenaidah–Jashore six-lane highway project remains stalled as delays in land acquisition and slow contractor performance continue to hamper the development work.
Years after its launch, the much-anticipated highway is yet to take visible shape, causing growing public suffering.
More than 50 per cent of land acquisition has already been completed in the two project sections within Jhenaidah, with Section 8 acquisition notices issued by the district administration. However, affected landowners allege that compensation rates were fixed unfairly and that their objections have failed to bring any solution.
The first phase covers the stretch from Jhenaidah bus terminal to Kolahat in Kaliganj municipality, while the second phase extends up to Barobazar in Kaliganj. Officials said many owners have already handed over their land after receiving notices, but several owners in the first phase have submitted objections over compensation assessments.
Landowners from Nrisinhapur mouza in Kharikhali area under Maharajpur Union alleged that the prices fixed for acquired land vary widely despite neighbouring plots being located in the same area. They claimed that separate mouza classifications resulted in significant differences in valuation.
Landowner Kamruzzaman Billah alleged that the government-fixed rates were not followed properly. He said the minimum registration value for garden-class land in Nrisinhapur mouza between 2020 and 2022 was Tk 34,786 per decimal, but the acquisition notice fixed compensation at only Tk 3,062 per decimal.
Another landowner, Yusuf Siddiq, said their land was being acquired at an “unfairly low price” despite official mouza rates. He claimed that the acquisition office cited registered sale values from 2020–2022 but the owners did not receive compensation according to those figures.
Documents shown by affected owners indicate that a garden-class plot under dag no 1494 was valued at Tk 3,062 per decimal in the Section 8 notice, while the sub-registry office’s minimum mouza rate for the same category was Tk 34,786 during 2020–2022 and Tk 38,975 during 2023–2024.
The affected owners said they have repeatedly submitted objections to the land acquisition branch and also sent memoranda to the prime minister through the district administration. They have further lodged complaints with the Anti-Corruption Commission alleging irregularities in the acquisition process.
Jhenaidah Deputy Commissioner Md Noman Hossain said objections were heard before issuing Section 8 notices, after which there is normally no further scope for objections. However, he said any specific complaint regarding valuation would be reviewed.
He added that acquisition prices were calculated based on the average registered sale values of land transactions between 2020 and 2022. Many people, he said, registered land sales at lower declared prices to reduce government fees, creating a gap between market prices and registered values.
“Despite this, we will examine any complaint received regarding land valuation,” the deputy commissioner said.
