ZCZC
BSS-15
DONATION-RELIGIOUS-ORGANISATIONS
Over one lakh religious organizations get Taka 176cr grant
DHAKA, July 17, 2018 (BSS) – The government has distributed around Taka 176 crore among over one lakh religious organizations and individuals, including mosques, madrasahs, temples, pagodas and the destitute, across the country since 2009.
“We have distributed Taka 175.92 crore among 1,01,554 religious organizations across the country since 2009 for their renovation and overall development,” Religious Affairs Ministry Joint Secretary (grant) Zahir Ahmed told BSS today.
As many as 48,316 mosques received over Taka 73.30 crore while other Islamic organisations such as maktabs, Quran teaching centres and hifjakhanas got Taka 11.84 lakh and Eidgahs and graveyards Taka 9.99 lakh as donation during the two consecutive tenures of the Awami League government.
The government has constructed two minarets of the national Baitul Mukarram National Mosque and a large air-conditioned space for 5000 women to offer prayers.
The government has donated around Taka 12.41 crore among 9,057 Hindu temples and Taka 12.40 crore among 446 Hindu cremation grounds.
Besides, a project involving Taka 150 crore for the overall development of Andarkilla Jame Mosque in Chittagong funded by the Kuwait government is now going on.
Taka 13.22 crore have been distributed among 11,461 Hindu religious organisations and 5101 destitute people of the community on the occasion of the Durga Puja from the Relief and Welfare Fund of the Prime Minister in the last nine years since 2009.
Residential Buddhist monks and other destitute people of the community have got Taka 7.61 lakh from the government for treatment purpose.
The Christian Religious Welfare Trust has donated Taka 1.59 crore to 284 Christian churches for their construction, repair, earth filing and construction of boundary walls of cemeteries.
A total of 9057 Hindu temples and 446 cremation grounds have received over Taka 12.40 crore and 1.24 crore respectively as donation respectively while 999 Buddhist pagodas and cremation grounds got over Taka 2.33 crore and 28.66lakh respectively from the government.
The government has donated Taka 37.73lakh and 6.27 lakh among 160 Christian churches and 13 cemeteries respectively for their overall development.
A total of 10343 destitute Muslims received around Taka 18.87 crore from the government while 2,422 Hindu destitute people got over Taka 3.50 crore from the government since 2009.
The government gave Taka 22.39 crore to people and over Taka 111.84 crore to 68,511 organisations during the period.
BSS/Spl-AHJ/GA/1605 hrs