Dhaka: The Cabinet has approved on Monday the draft of The Chittagong Hill Tracts Land Dispute Resolution Commission (Amendment) Act cutting the discretionary power of the chairman of the Commission in taking a decision.

The approval was given in the weekly meeting of the cabinet held at Bangladesh Secretariat with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, reports BSS.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said, the draft law also modified the existing provisions of quorum of the meeting of the commission.

He said, the amendment has been brought incorporating the proposals of signed document between the government with Parbottya Chattagram Janasanghati Samity (PCJSS) at a meeting on 9 January, 2015 in Chittagong Circuit House.

The amendment would make the CHT land reform law more time befitting, he said.

‘According to the existing law, the decision of the Chairman has so far been considered as the decision of the Commission itself. But the new law proposed taking a decision based on opinion of the majority members of a meeting,’ the cabinet secretary said.

About the structure of the Commission, Shafiul Alam said, a retired Judge of the Bangladesh Supreme Court will be the Chairman of the Commission while chairman of CHT Regional Council or his representative, chairmen of the Zila Parishad of three hill districts, three circle Chiefs of CHT, Divisional Commissioner of Chittagong will be the members of the Commission.

The new law proposed that the quorum of a meeting of the Commission will require attendance of at least three members and its Chairman instead of two members and Chairman as it is in the existing law.

Shafiul Alam said, the draft law will come into effect by an ordinance considering its urgency as the Jatiya Sangsad will not be in session before next two months.

The Cabinet also gave nod to a proposal scrapping the draft approved by the Cabinet earlier on National E Services Bill, 2015.

The Cabinet Secretary said that the government would frame a broad based law to this end titled ‘National Enterprise Architecture Act’ which will cover all the aspects including E-Services.

Such law would be enacted following the laws of the developed countries like Australia, he said.