The construction of most of the stalls and pavilions at Dhaka International Trade Fair 2020 lied incomplete as of on Wednesday despite the inauguration of the month-long fair by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the day.
Abdul Kuddus, a carpenter, and his co-workers were seen busy with the construction work of a pavilion of Abul Khair Group on the fair premises.
Visiting the fair after the inauguration, it was seen that construction of more than half of the stalls was incomplete with the construction materials littering the venue.
The construction work of only some stalls was seen to have just begun, while others, both stalls and pavilions, did not even start their construction work.
Besides, construction of internal walkways inside the fair venue remained incomplete with piles of sand and cement lying on the ground.
People working on the incomplete stalls and their owners said it would take another two to three days to get construction work done.
"We started working on two stalls on December 17; work of one stall was completed, while that of another will take two to three more days," said Abdul Kuddus, a worker.
Mohammad Mintu, owner of Barisal Food Products, was seen arranging dry food items on his stall’s shelves.
He complained that the DITF authorities constructed only the ceilings and boundaries of the pavilions and they had to decorate the entire stall themselves.
“The DITF authorities finished setting up the boundaries and ceilings of the stalls on December 28," he said and added, "We began construction a day later. That is why our stall still looks incomplete. We are yet to set up cable lines, lights and stall banner."
Mohammad Nannu Miah, another stall owner, complained that piles of sand and cement were lying everywhere at the fair venue, while nearly two-thirds of stalls were still incomplete.
"Customers would not buy anything from incomplete stalls," he mentioned, adding, "The fair should have begun on January 5 after completion of everything inside."
Around 90% of the foreign pavilions were also found still under construction.
Meanwhile, visitors were also seen to pass leisure time at the fair.
Bithi Akter, who came from Mirpur with her family, said, “I came here with my cousins and siblings to buy something. But most of the stalls are still not ready. Some stalls just started decoration.”
Avijit Chowdhury, director general of Export Promotion Bureau, said, “We want a clean and secure fair. Most stalls are under constructions yet. Roads and the field also will be cleaned. It will take two to three days to complete. We hope all the stalls will be ready by January 3.”
“We are also taking special measures so that no hawker or beggar enter the fair and no one can harass visitors," he added.
According to EPB, there are 483 stalls of different organizations from 21 countries including Bangladesh this year.
Among them, there are 112 pavilions, 128 mini pavilions and 243 different category stalls.
