Govt. undertakes a plan to rehabilitate 280,000 poor

It was told in a meeting held at Prime Minister Office (PMO) here on Tuesday for reviewing the implementation process, progress and future action plan of the housing programmes initiated for poor by the government of Sheikh Hasina.

The projects- 'Asrayan-2 project', 'Ekti Bari Ekti Khamar' project, Guchha Gram project', Bari Fera Karmasuchi' and 'Grihayan Tahabil Project'- are being implemented under the supervision of the PMO.

Addressing the meeting, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said her government has a plan to make it sure that no people would remain shelterless when the present tenure of her government would come to end in 2019.

All people living in slums in different parts of the capital would be rehabilitated in a particular place, she said adding that the government has taken a plan to construct flats for them at Kamrangirchar.

Prime Minister's Adviser HT Imam and Dr Toifique-e Elahi Chowdhury, Principal Secretary Md Abul Kalam Azad, Land Secretary Mesbah Ul Alam, PMO Secretary Suraiya Begum, directors of the projects were present.

The prime minister said poor people are becoming shelterless frequently because of river erosion, natural disaster and other causes, and it's the duty of the government to arrange shelters for them.

"We don't want people to live in footpath and on streets or beside the rail line," Sheikh Hasina said.

"Side by side our main goal is to alleviate poverty. And for this reason, we have undertaken projects to help them with various income generating, cooperative and savings programmes instead of keeping them under the grid of vicious cycle of high rate micro credit," she said.

The prime minister asked the concerned officials to expedite implementation of the projects taken by the government for ensuring dwellings for every poor particularly those who lost their homes and homesteads due to river erosion, natural calamity and other reasons.

She also asked the officials to work in a coordinated manner to build houses for the homeless people within the remaining time of the present tenure of her government.

Sheikh Hasina said her government is providing support to improve the living condition of the people through involving them in various income generating activities. Such supports are contributing towards development of their skill and working capacity, she said.

The prime minister stressed the need for creating awareness among the poor to utilize the government support to make their own fortune. She asked the officials to maintain records of the beneficiaries of the housing projects to check extrusion of any outsider or land grabber in future.

In this regard, the Prime Minister mentioned that many housing projects were also undertaken during her government's 1996-2001 tenure which drew remarkable success at that time. But the local influential people occupied the land later, she noted.

She stressed the need for protecting houses through constructing barrack house and formation of cooperatives of the beneficiaries to establish their rights on the land.

The prime minister pointed out the Bhashantek housing project taken by her government for the city's slum people. She asked the officials to ensure the access of the real poor to the flats.

Concerned directors of the projects highlighted progress and ongoing status of the projects through power point presentation.