PM Launches Video Conferencing with Grassroots Officials

Under the initiative the top executive of the country from now on will regularly exchange views with the public representatives at local level and top officials of the district administration to know about their problems, progress of execution of the development programmes of their area.

Primarily the video conferencing will be held at least two times in a month after the weekly cabinet meeting. Later, it may be arranged in every week, PM's Press Secretary AKM Shamim Chowdhury said.

The Prime Minister held her first video conference with the public representatives and government officials of Moulavi Bazar district of Sylhet and Pabna district of Rajshahi Division from their respective offices.

She talked to the officials from country's administrative hub Bangladesh Secretariat after the cabinet meeting.

It's the first such effort from country's top executive to talk directly with the government officials and public representatives at field level to know about the progress of execution of various programmes taken for socio-economic development.

During the video conference the Prime Minister will take first hand report on execution of various development programmes and give necessary directives to bring dynamism in the activities of the local government.

"It is called digital Bangladesh", the Prime Minister said while launching the video conferencing with public representatives and officials from Moulavi Bazar district administration conference room.

After taking office in January last Sheikh Hasina initiated for visiting different ministries and exchange views with top officials of the ministries to bring dynamism in the activities of the ministries.

The video conferencing will help implement government's vision to build a digital Bangladesh, she said.

Sheikh Hasina asked her cabinet colleagues to talk with local administrative officials regularly to monitor the execution of various development works and ensure their proper execution.

During the video conference the Prime Minister enquired about the actions taken by local administration after recent incident at Shahajalal University of Science and Technology.

She asked the police commissioner of Sylhet to take stern action against the responsible persons without considering their political or social identity.

Divisional Commissioners of Rajshahi and Sylhet divisions, Deputy Commissioners, police commissioners, administrators of the districts and heads of various departments including Pourasabha mayors, Upazila Parishad Chairmen, Civil Surgeon, officials of the Agriculture Extension Department, BADC and water development board spoke on the occasion.

The Prime Minister also enquired about the delivery of the healthcare services from community clinics and upazila level hospitals. She wanted to know how the community clinics are functioning and whether people are getting the medicines given by the government free of cost.

Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan conducted the video conference.

-Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS)