Everyone will have a home, a standard life

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said her government would manage shelters for all marking the "Mujib Borsho" to enable them to lead a standard life.

"We have set a target in the Mujib Borsho that not a single person will remain without address or home. I will somehow manage an address for everyone,'' she said.

The PM was addressing a programme marking the distribution of homes among 66,189 families alongside rehabilitating 3,715 others in the barracks under the Ashrayan-2 project.

Joining the event virtually from the Gono Bhaban, Hasina asked all concerned, particularly the local administrations, to hand the ownerships of the houses to the beneficiaries.

She said 320,000 families were earlier given homes while work on building one lakh more houses for the landless and homeless would start soon.

The premier said she was very happy yesterday as she managed to give such a large number of houses to landless and homeless people.

Describing the ceremony marking the distribution of a large number of homes as the largest festival, Hasina said, "Today, it is the largest festival. There is no such big festival like giving homes to landless and homeless people on such a large scale."

She, however, thanked all concerned, including the local administrations and public representatives, for managing building such a huge number of houses maintaining due standard in a short period.

The PM said the souls of her father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and her mother and lakhs of martyrs who made supreme sacrifice for the country's Liberation War would rest in peace as such a huge number of people have got their own homes.

She urged all to pray for her as she could build the country as "Sonar Bangla" as dreamt by the Father of the Nation.

Referring to giving homes to the backward people such as dalits, horijons, transgender, tea workers and others, the PM said her government was working tirelessly to ensure improved live for cross-section of people in the society.

Hasina said the government has also rehabilitated the climate refugees with giving them homes at Khuruskul of Cox's Bazar and 100 more buildings are being built for them.

She criticised the previous BNP-Jamaat government for stopping the housing projects taken by the then Awami League government in 1997 to rehabilitate the landless and homeless people.

The PM said the AL after forming the government in 2009 had again initiated the Ashrayan project to rehabilitate the landless and homeless people.

Hasina later exchanged views with the beneficiaries, local AL leaders and public representatives who got connected to the programme from Khulna, Nilphamari, Habiganj and Chapainawabganj.

A video documentary on the government's effort to rehabilitate the landless and homeless people was screened at the programme.

PMO Secretary Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah moderated the function from the Gono Bhaban end.

The government has built 66,189 houses at a cost of Tk 1,168 crore. Built on two decimals of land, each of the houses has two rooms, one corridor and one latrine alongside electricity and water connections.