Businessman Kamal Zaman Molla has submitted an application seeking a long-term lease of 239.57 acres of land in Dhadarchar, situated at the confluence of the Shitalakshya and Brahmaputra rivers in Kapasia Upazila, Gazipur, to construct a 45 MW solar power plant.
Kamal Zaman Molla, an expelled independent candidate from the BNP after failing to secure a nomination for the Madaripur-1 constituency in the last general election, applied for this vast tract of government-owned khas land in his capacity as the director of an entity named “Sannova Energy OPC.”
The land requested for the solar power plant includes riverbeds, diluviated (sikasti) land, canals, sandbars (baluchar), and a major portion of agricultural land (nal), all of which are highly sensitive from an environmental and hydrological perspective.
The application submitted to the Deputy Commissioner of Gazipur on August 16 expressed interest in obtaining a long-term settlement of the land under the Non-Agricultural Khas Land Management and Settlement Policy 1995.
In its application, Sannova Energy OPC claimed that Netherlands-based global funding had been secured for the project, while discussions with investors from South Korea and China were currently underway.
The company promised that supplying the generated solar electricity directly to the national grid would help address the country’s power deficit, reduce carbon emissions, and foster eco-tourism and economic development in the region.
However, the initiative to lease out government land and set up a commercial power plant in the ecologically rich char—which holds immense potential for tourism and biodiversity—has sparked severe dissatisfaction and concern among local residents and environmentalists.
Kapasia Upazila Assistant Commissioner (Land) Md. Nahidul Haq stated that Dhadarchar, located at the confluence of the two rivers, is home to over 100,000 large trees. He added that a report is being prepared following the application to verify the classification and overall particulars of the khas land.
Chairman of Bangladesh River Foundation, Md. Monir Hossain, pointed out that under existing laws, rivers and adjacent lands are considered “Public Trust Property,” leaving no scope to lease them out to any entity.
He further noted that constructing commercial infrastructure in this natural ecosystem—populated by 25 to 30 species of birds and varied flora—would severely degrade the local environment. Instead, he advocated for developing the area into an environmental research and observation center.
Attempts were made to contact entrepreneur Kamal Zaman Molla over the phone to get his statement regarding the controversial lease application, but he could not be reached for comment.
