According to the residents, there is a severe shortage of kindergartens in their area, and it is sometimes difficult to find available land for new buildings. In this regard, they find it extremely illogical and unacceptable that land designated for social facilities is being transferred into private hands. One local resident reported: “The demolition of the kindergarten buildings began in 2019, and in 2023, a café appeared in its place, which has been operating for the third year now. Previously, there was a parking lot on the kindergarten's territory, but now there is a construction materials store. The area of the plot is 30 acres, and the land was resold among different people, divided into parts, and the price reached about 15 thousand dollars.”
According to citizens' claims, law enforcement agencies are aware of the situation and the attempts to return the social facility have been ongoing for 4–5 years. “We are informed that the process of returning the land is underway. However, we suspect that hidden negotiations and deals are actually taking place. If the matter were truly progressing, the café and stores in this area would not continue their operations. We have addressed this issue to the GKNB,” they added.
The head of the Gulistan rural council, Shukurula Satarov, explained that the territory where the “Nookat” café is located was originally registered in documents as a site for a sports complex, which classifies it as a social facility. He noted that the area of this plot is about 2 hectares. Currently, the land has ended up in private hands under unclear circumstances: about 22 individuals have state certificates for these plots.
Satarov also reported that the process of transferring the land of the sports complex into private hands began back in the 2000s. “There is information on this issue both in the GKNB and in the prosecutor's office. Previously, this was the territory of the sports complex, which was part of the master plan. According to the original documents, its area exceeds 2 hectares. Currently, negotiations are underway with citizens who have state certificates, and efforts are being made to fully return the land to municipal ownership. The kindergarten on this territory was built later. In the registry created based on municipal resolution No. 531, this plot is registered as a sports complex. We are now at the stage of returning the land,” he noted.
According to available data, the kindergarten plot of about 30 acres was divided among four individuals and registered as private property, all of whom have state certificates. Considering that the population of the Gulistan rural district exceeds 25 thousand people, local residents report the need to build about ten more preschool institutions, as there are only two kindergartens operating in the area, each accommodating 100 children.
