She has also directed the authorities concerned to lease the abandoned house 'Elias Manjil' at Ahsan Ahmed Road to Red Crescent Society for 99 years.

Jalaluddin Al-Quaderi, director of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), sent a letter on July 13 to the Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Public Works in this regard.

Earlier, Mayor Shaikh Tayebur Rahman wrote two letters to Prime Minister Khaleda Zia on May 5 and July 3 as KDA refused to hand over Khulna bus terminal to KCC defying the inter-ministerial decision, said a city corporation press release.

The inter-ministerial meeting on March 3 in 1993 decided to hand over the bus terminal to city corporation.

KDA chairman Brigadier General Aminul Hasan could not be contacted for his comment on the issue. He is now in Dhaka to discuss this matter with authorities concerned, KDA sources said said.

A senior official said that KDA being an autonomous body under the Ministry of Public Works has been contributing to the infrastructural development of Khulna since pre-independence days. This autonomous body is being run from its own income, he said. Expressing concern over the decision, he said that it may hinder development works of Khulna city.

Four out of five city mayors held a meeting on June 17 in Dhaka at 'Nagar Bhaban' with a view to taking positive decision on how to strengthen city corporations and increase revenues to provide citizens with more civic facilities.

Mayors in the meeting agreed that the development authorities should be abolished to empower city corporations.