Eradicate mosquito, keep city clean: PM

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia yesterday issued directives to the authorities concerned to enhance the beauty of the capital and to eradicate the mosquito menace by keeping it always clean.

Her directives came at an inter-ministerial coordination meeting on different development programmes under various departments in Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) areas.

During the two-hour long meeting held at the Prime Minister's Office, the mayor of Dhaka, ministers and officials discussed the pros and cons of the existing mechanism for the cleanup of Dhaka City including its waste disposal management, and giving serious consideration to take necessary steps to enhance its beauty.

Listening to all concerned on a host of development issues, Khaleda Zia directed the DCC to clean the city without wasting time to lessen the sufferings of city-dwellers.

The prime minister suggested establishing four dumping grounds in four corners of the burgeoning city for its garbage disposal instead of disposing the waste at different points.

She called for the use of both machine and manual methods for cleaning the city and checking the mosquito menace.

Khaleda Zia suggested reviving the earlier timing of disposing garbage from 12 midnight to 8 in the morning, ensuring proper management of garbage disposal boxes at different points, erasing wall writ ings, timely removal of banners, and not allowing to place construction materials and pushcarts haphazardly on roadsides.

Emphasising the need for regular monitoring of all development activities of the city and services to its dwellers, Khaleda Zia asked the DCC and metropolitan police authorities to strictly apply the rules and regulations to keep the city clean and remove other hazards to enhance its beauty and safety.

The meeting decided to form a coordination committee comprising all officials concerned of different departments headed by the mayor of DCC to coordinate and supervise the development activities of the city to help city-dwellers avert any inconvenience.

The coordinating committee, among other things, will look into the matters of road repair and sewerage system and control of the mosquito menace to ensure that those activities are properly coordinated.

The prime minister directed the authorities concerned to be careful so that the city's bio-diversity and environment are not affected while carrying out aerial spray and other programmes for mosquito control.

Khaleda Zia also asked the authorities concerned to place a proposal to create new graveyards to meet the dearth of burial grounds in the city.

At the beginning of the meeting, DCC Mayor Sadek Hossain Khoka made an introductory speech, outlining the importance of the capital city and its problems and the necessary measures to be taken for its development.

Those who took part in the discussion were Finance Minister M Saifur Rahman, LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, Communications Minister Barrister Nazmul Huda, Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Barrister Moudud Ahmed, Home Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, Public Works and Housing Minister Mirza Abbas, Post and Telecommunications Minister Barrister Aminul Huq, State Minister for Energy and Mineral Resources AKM Musharraf Hossain, State Minister for Power Iqbal Hasan Mahmud, PM's political secretaries Haris Chowdhury and Mosaddek Ali, and LGRD secretary AYBI Siddiqui.

The prime minister also asked the authorities to place a proposal for enhancing financial power of the DCC mayor to help strengthen the local government system by ensuring development at the local level.