Dust a public health hazard

Photo: Rashed Shuman

I express my heartfelt thanks to Dr. M Mahboob Hossain of Brac University for bringing up this important topic in the forefront. I also express my heartfelt thanks to The Daily Star for publishing the letter.
Dr. Mahboob Hossain said those behind polluting the environment with dust particles should be held responsible and penalized accordingly. I highly appreciate this suggestion.. The irony is, those entrusted with the job to maintain cleanliness are, in fact, the main polluters. By sweeping the streets with broomsticks, more environmental pollution is caused. What about the space or the cosmic dust that falls onto the earth by about 40,000 tons a year!
Everyone must have noticed that the leaves of all the trees and plants in and around Dhaka turn dusty during winter, which definitely obstructs the photosynthesis process through which plants and trees take in carbon-dioxide and breathe out oxygen, an essential element for the survival of all living beings. Perhaps, majority of the countrymen are in absolute dark about this fact as most of the people are not aware, and even those of us who consider ourselves educated are not aware of this dire situation.
Here in the United States, the streets are cleaned with mechanized vacuum cleaners that are put into operation at night, when people go to sleep, ensuring a pollution and dust free environment for its citizens. But in Bangladesh there is no other way out but to wait for the rain to come and clean the environment for the 160 million inhabitants of Bangladesh. Moreover, there does not exist a proper and hygienically developed system for the disposal of trash. This particular issue of environmental pollution poses a serious threat to public health in Bangladesh and as such it is more important to establish a pollution free environment than building a digital Bangladesh.