Army Denied Token-Priced Land for Ordnance Factory in Chattogram

Reading Time: 2 minutes On 29 July, the government formally rejected a proposal by the Bangladesh Army to acquire 54.99 acres of land from the closed Jalil Textile Mills in Chattogram at a token price, Finance Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed said. The land, controlled by Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation (BTMC), was earlier proposed to be handed over to the Army for expansion of the Bangladesh Ordnance Factories (BOF), which currently operates out of Gazipur Cantonment. The Army had sought the land for establishing a new ordnance factory in the strategic port city of Chattogram, where proximity to the Indian state of Tripura could be advantageous. Officials say that BTMC had evaluated the land at Tk 111.44 crore, and pointed out that its outstanding liabilities—covering utility bills, land charges, and bank loans—amount to Tk 17.04 crore. BTMC had thus offered a transfer at the token price of Tk 17.04 crore, effectively