<i>When road sweepers and strollers draw near</i>
It was 8:00 o'clock in the morning. A band of joggers was returning home amid a cloud of dust. Using hands to shield their eyes from the dust blowing in the wind, they strode forward in their sneakers and tracksuits.
All of a sudden, one of them burst into a coughing fit. As tears came streaming down his cheeks, his companions helped him to a nearby bench and tried to soothe him. Refusing to leave a member behind, they patiently wait up for him to regain his calm while expecting the cloud of dust to go away.
It happened last Wednesday when the group of joggers was having their morning stroll in the Dhanmondi lakeside park. A number of others were also walking on the walkway.
It was not before a good few minutes when the dust and litter finally disappeared after the road sweeper put down her broom and the strollers resumed their jog.
Dhanmondi residents allege that Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) cleaners spoil their morning walks by doing their jobs at an untimely hour. They say that the cleaners sweep the Dhanmondi lakeside walkway often between 7:30am and 8:30am--a time when scores of people go to the lakeside for morning walk.
"We leave the warm comfort of our bed every morning and come here to jog. The idea is to keep fit and stay healthy but these sweepers and cleaners turn out be the spoilsports," said Jamshed Chowdhury, 54, who looked red and sweaty due to the coughing fit.
"He [Jamshed] is allergic to dust, and also has asthma problems," said Iqbal Karim, a fellow jogger and doctor standing next to Jamshed. "A lot of people come here to keep fit or regain fitness. With the cleaners sweeping at these hours, the dust and litter flying in the air can do anything but good to their health," he said.
The private practitioner went on to explain that dust particles overpower human body's defences and build up in the respiratory systems. This can harm sensitive lung tissue.
"Dust may irritate the lung and trigger allergic reactions as well as asthma attacks. People who already have respiratory troubles may also have serious breathing problems from these attacks," he said adding that dust can also cause wheezing, runny noses, chronic breathing and lung problems.
"It is not only the morning walkers are affected. As this is the school opening hours, a lot of schoolchildren are also inhaling dust and other toxic particles because of this untimely sweeping," said Abdur Rahim, a resident of Dhanmondi 8/A.
According to the guiding principles of the DCC, sweeping of streets and public areas should be over and done within 6:00am while collection of the trash should be finished by 7:00am. However, DCC officials admitted that the schedules apply only to the VIP areas.
“We aim to take care of the cleaning jobs and collect trash from the VIP areas by 7:00am in the morning. However, taking care of other city areas usually takes longer and may stretch up to 10:00am depending on the location,” said an official at the Conservancy Department of DCC requesting anonymity.
DCC officials blamed the cleaners for doing their jobs at their will and sweeping streets after sunrise.
"We have received complaints regarding this specific issue in the Dhanmondi lakeside area. However, it is difficult to supervise these workers especially with their sheer number and the number of areas needed to be covered," said an official concerned from the DCC zone-5.
"Once in a while we do take measures to raise their [sweepers'] work standards, but it dwindles afterwards because of the absence of proper monitoring," he said.
The cleaners blamed each other for not doing their jobs properly.
"I, for myself like to get over with the job as early as possible. But most others tend to waste time dillydallying their jobs," said Karim Ali, a cleaner who was seen taking rest beside the Dhanmondi lake.
"In other countries, it is mandatory for the cleaning officials to sweep streets before sunrise. However, in our country, they do not seem to give a damn about the convenience of people," said Abdur Rahim, a Dhanmondi resident.
"The authorities should do something to enforce an appropriate timetable for these cleaners, especially in a public place like the Dhanmondi lakeside park," he said.
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