PM to inaugurate 50 model mosques nationwide today

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will launch 50 out of 560 model mosques today.

The model mosques and Islamic cultural centres will be built across the country with an estimated cost of about Tk 8,722 crore.

Once implemented, about 5.50 lakh devotees will be able to offer their prayers in the mosques, said Shafique Talukder, deputy project director, at a briefing on the premises of Savar Upazila Model Mosque yesterday.

He said there will be facilities for persons with disabilities so that they can offer prayers at the mosques.

Talukder said 69 mosques will be built in 64 districts and city corporations, 475 in upazilas and 16 in coastal areas.

The district mosques will be four-storied with parking facilities. The mosques at upazila level will be three-storied while the ground floors of the mosques in the coastal areas will be kept vacant to provide shelter during disasters, according to project documents.

Besides, 100 more model mosques will be inaugurated by the end of this year, marking the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, said Talukder.

"The mosques will also have training programmes for imams and Hajj pilgrims," said Talukder.

Expressing gratitude to the prime minister, Maruf Billah, imam of Savar Upazila Model Mosque, said these mosques will work as a hub for Islamic research and spreading the true message of Islam.