Realtors in Dhaka say they are facing a severe crisis as the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha’s (RAJUK) digital construction permitting system has been offline for nearly three months following a major cyberattack.

The Electronic Construction Permitting System (eCPS), suspended since May 20, was hacked a day earlier when attackers secured illegal approval for a 15-storey building in a restricted wetland zone. Three suspects were later arrested.

The shutdown has paralysed approvals for new projects, leaving hundreds of designs and land-use clearances in limbo. Based on RAJUK’s own records, over 1,400 design approvals have been lost since May, delaying construction of as many buildings and leaving an estimated 43,000 workers idle.

More than 300 backward-linkage industries, including cement, steel, tiles, and paints, have also been hit, threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people.

Industry leaders complain that file processing has not resumed despite promises and warn of protests if the issue is not resolved by August 20.

This is the second major breach of RAJUK’s system, after nearly 30,000 files went missing in a December 2023 cyberattack that later reached the High Court.