BARISAL CITY

Notice to remove cell phone towers from 137 buildings

Barisal City Corporation (BCC) authorities have served a notice to the owners to remove mobile phone towers from 137 high-rise buildings in the city recently.
In the notice, the authorities ordered to remove the towers from the buildings; otherwise pay the exact amount of tax fixed in this regard.
Ranjit Kumar Das, chief executive officer of BCC, said that the number of cell phone towers being set up atop high-rise buildings is increasing day by day, ignoring order of the city corporation authorities.
A section of building and land owners are being financially benefited by different cell phone companies by allowing them to set up tower on the rooftops of their buildings or lands, openly violating the BCC rule.
The CEO of BCC said they served notice first to the cell phone operators but all the operators did not respond to it.  “Later we served notice to the owners to remove towers from the rooftops of their buildings in the city areas,” added the CEO.
BCC lastly served notice to all the 137 building owners on June 18, 2015 with the copy of the government gazette in this regard.
BCC threatened the building owners to file certificate cases against them if they fail to remove the towers or pay tax.
Farid Hosen Sikdar, chief of the advertisement section of BCC, said, “We the authorities conducted a survey in the city area and found 137 towers of six mobile phone operators atop buildings.”
“LGED sent us a gazette on tower tax on March 2 this year,” he added.
According to the gazette, tax fixed annually for a tower high up to five  metres is Tk 1, 50,000, for one high up to ten metres Tk 2, 50,000, for one high up to 15 meters Tk3,75,000 and for a tower high above 15 meters Tk 5,00,000.
If tax for the towers can be realised at this rate, BCC can earn minimum Tk5 crore a year, sources said.   But till now, BCC could not realise a single penny from this sector.
To increase its income, it has been made mandatory for BCC to realise tax from the source, said Farid.
BCC sources said there are 160 illegal towers on the rooftops of the high-rise buildings in Barisal metropolitan area.  BCC did not earn any revenue from the towers except one.
The towers were set up as per bilateral contracts between the building owners and mobile phone companies.
The BCC sources said neither the operators nor the house owners take any permission from the BCC for setting up the towers.

BARISAL CITY

Notice to remove cell phone towers from 137 buildings

Barisal City Corporation (BCC) authorities have served a notice to the owners to remove mobile phone towers from 137 high-rise buildings in the city recently. In the notice, the authorities ordered to remove the towers from the buildings; otherwise pay the exact amount of tax fixed in this regard. Ranjit Kumar Das, chief executive officer of BCC, said that the number of cell phone towers being set up atop high-rise buildings is increasing day by day, ignoring order of the city corporation authorities. A section of building and land owners are being financially benefited by different cell phone companies by allowing them to set up tower on the rooftops of their buildings or lands, openly violating the BCC rule. The CEO of BCC said they served notice first to the cell phone operators but all the operators did not respond to it. Later we served notice to the owners to remove towers from the rooftops of their buildings in the city areas, added the CEO. BCC lastly served notice to all the 137 building owners on June 18, 2015 with the copy of the government gazette in this regard. BCC threatened the building owners to file certificate cases against them if they fail to remove the towers or pay tax. Farid Hosen Sikdar, chief of the advertisement section of BCC, said, We the authorities conducted a survey in the city area and found 137 towers of six mobile phone operators atop buildings. LGED sent us a gazette on tower tax on March 2 this year, he added. According to the gazette, tax fixed annually for a tower high up to five metres is Tk 1, 50,000, for one high up to ten metres Tk 2, 50,000, for one high up to 15 meters Tk3,75,000 and for a tower high above 15 meters Tk 5,00,000. If tax for the towers can be realised at this rate, BCC can earn minimum Tk5 crore a year, sources said. But till now, BCC could not realise a single penny from this sector. To increase its income, it has been made mandatory for BCC to realise tax from the source, said Farid. BCC sources said there are 160 illegal towers on the rooftops of the high-rise buildings in Barisal metropolitan area. BCC did not earn any revenue from the towers except one. The towers were set up as per bilateral contracts between the building owners and mobile phone companies. The BCC sources said neither the operators nor the house owners take any permission from the BCC for setting up the towers.