Ctg administration recovers Tk200 crore Tea Board land after evicting Modern Steel Mills

The Chattogram district administration has recovered 65 decimals of land belonging to the Bangladesh Tea Board in the Bayezid Bostami area of the port city after evicting Modern Steel Mills Limited.

The eviction drive was carried out today (8 January) under the leadership of Executive Magistrate Hossain Mohammad of the Chattogram district administration. The market value of the recovered government land is estimated to be more than Tk200 crore.

Following the recovery, the Tea Board, an institution under the Ministry of Commerce, will now be able to begin construction of its headquarters and residential facilities for employees on the site.

According to Tea Board officials, the vacant land adjacent to the Bayezid Bostami shrine had been leased to Modern Steel Mills in 2008. Under the most recent agreement signed in 2018, the lease expired on 31 December 2022.

Despite repeated notices issued by the Tea Board after 2022, the company allegedly continued to occupy the land by using political influence. Over the past four years, Modern Steel Mills also failed to pay a significant portion of its outstanding rent, amounting to around Tk2.24 crore, Tea Board sources said.

During the operation, Bangladesh Tea Board Joint Secretary Mohammad Moazzem Hossain told the media that the board had been trying for a long time to recover the land. However, the occupiers repeatedly sought court intervention, which delayed the process.

He said the High Court had directed the company on 1 June last year to clear all outstanding dues within one month, but the order was ignored. He also alleged that at various times, threats were made to implicate Tea Board officials in false cases to prevent eviction.

After the expiry of a final 15-day stay order, the district administration carried out the eviction drive with the assistance of police and the army, bringing the land back under government control.