Lalmonirhat dist Shaheed Minar in utter neglect

People from all walks of life in the town urged the authorities concerned to renovate the district's central Shaheed Minar in Saptana area in the town as it has become dilapidated due to lack of maintenance.

They said this at two meetings of the townspeople at the central Shaheed Minar on December 20 in 2017 and on January 9 this year.

Locals said the condition of the central Shaheed Minar has been deteriorating since its construction in 1968. The authorities paint it before February 21 every year but do not take any steps to maintain it after that, they added.

Political parties, cultural activists and teachers and students of different educational institutions come to the Shaheed Minar to observe important national days every year, but none of them come forward to repair it, locals said.

“I have been hearing for the last few years that a special project will be taken up to renovate the central Shaheed Minar, but I do not see any implementation,” said Nurul Islam, a college teacher at Thanapara in the town. “Many Shaheed Minars in the villages are in better condition than the district central Shaheed Minar,” he added.

Language Movement hero Comrade Shamsul Haque of BDR Haat Road in the town said the government is building big office buildings, roads and bridges by spending a lot of money but is not repairing the central Shaheed Minar. “Shaheed Minar is the symbol of our Language Movement and the Language Movement is the first step of our Liberation War. The government must reconstruct, modernise and maintain the Shaheed Minar,” he added.

“I personally contacted many high officials of the government many times for funding to reconstruct the district central Shaheed Minar, but I got nothing except promises,” said another Language Movement hero Abdul Quader Bhasani of the town.

Lalmonirhat Municipality Mayor Reazul Islam Rintu told this correspondent that the district's central Shaheed Minar will be reconstructed and modernised with the municipality's fund. “Design of the Shaheed Minar has already been approved and the work will start in the current fiscal year,” he said, adding that it will be very attractive.