After a gap of six years, the process of weighing and counting gold, silver and foreign currencies found in the donation boxes of Kishoreganj’s historic Pagla Mosque has begun.
The process began around 9:45am on Monday at the deputy commissioner’s conference room under the supervision of the local administration.
Nine containers and six envelopes kept in the treasury were opened to weigh the valuables, verify the carat of the gold and categorise the foreign currencies by country.
After the valuation, the gold and silver will be auctioned at market prices, while the foreign currencies will be exchanged at the latest rates set by Bangladesh Bank.
A nine-member sub-committee headed by the additional district magistrate is supervising the process, with assistance from three executive magistrates, police, Ansar, bank officials and goldsmiths.
Ten members of the District Jewellers’ Association are also helping weigh and assess the gold and silver.
Deputy Commissioner Sohana Nasrin, Zila Parishad Administrator Khaled Saifullah Shohel, District Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Md Ramzan Ali, Local Government Division Deputy Director (Deputy Secretary) Jebun Nahar Shammi, Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Md Ishtiaq Imon, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Education and ICT) Jasmin Akter and Additional District Magistrate Md Ershadul Ahmed attended the process, along with other district administration officials.
According to district administration sources, gold and silver ornaments collected over nearly three years were last auctioned on 11 March 2020 for Tk1,15,04,110 (Tk 1.15 crore).
The auction included 420 bhori of gold ornaments and 188 bhori of silver ornaments in five categories.
These comprised 21 bhori of 21- and 22-carat foreign gold sold at Tk39,400 per bhori, 31 bhori of local gold sold at Tk36,300 per bhori, 131 bhori of local gold moon-and-star ornaments sold at Tk40,500 per bhori, 237 bhori and 10 ana of nose pins sold at Tk17,600 per bhori, and 188 bhori of silver ornaments sold at Tk400 per bhori.
During the 2020 auction, foreign currency donated to the mosque was sold for Tk70 lakh.
Cash collected from the donation boxes was deposited with Rupali Bank, while the gold ornaments were kept in the collectorate treasury.
The donation boxes were last opened on 27 June this year, yielding Tk15,90,80,000 (Tk15.90 crore).
Although the boxes have not been opened since then, a substantial amount remains in the mosque’s fund alongside previously collected revenue.
Donations worth Tk39,32,106 have also been received through mobile banking since the launch of the mosque’s official website.
Devotees and visitors regularly donate local and foreign currencies, as well as gold and silver ornaments, to the mosque.
The donation boxes are opened periodically, and the collected funds are deposited into the central repository.
