Civic amenities elude Pabna townspeople

PABNA, Oct 26: There is no let-up in sufferings of the residents of the Pabna district town thanks to absence of required civic amenities such as proper roads, clean water, and healthcare facilities.

Despite being a first-class municipality, Pabna town has not been able to provide its citizens such most-needed facilities for a long time.

The townspeople are suffering acutely as expansion work on the important roads is not being done, broken and dilapidated roads not being repaired and sewerage and drainage systems not be developed.

Potholes have developed in numerous places of the roads- be they large or small, making it mostly difficult for the vehicles, especially rickshaw-vans and auto-rickshaws, to move.

All roads including Pabna Bus Terminal Road, Chandakhar Banshtala-Bajitpur Road, Chandmari-Akkel Shoko, Adarsh Girls School-Jugpara Road, Pabna General Hospital Road, Rabinagar-Govinda Road, Shalgaria Road and Nayanmati Road have been laying in an ever shabby state, much to the suffering of the municipality people.

Most of the drains are narrow and clogged with dirt from where water cannot pass creating there mosquito breeding grounds.

The environment helps further intensify the dengue fever outbreak creating a major health concern.

Cleanliness, repair and maintenance work on the roads and drains by the municipality authorities is hardly seen.

Mohammad Roni, a resident of Nimtala area on the Pabna Town-Terminal Road, told The Financial Express, "The authorities took information about the road earlier but nothing has happened. There is no point writing about it. We have no parents in the municipality."

Jahangir Hossain, an auto-rickshaw driver from Rabinagar-Govinda, told the FE, "We have been moving on this road amid great difficulties for a long time. Sometimes auto- rickshaws turn over due to poor road conditions. We don't want any rickshaw or auto- rickshaw to come on this road due to its poor state. Since my house is here, I have to take my auto-rickshaw to make a living."

A detailed illustrated report was published in The Financial Express on July 4 in this regard; but it yielded no result.

The municipality's executive engineer, Md. Nazmul Haque, told the FF that lack of fund is an obstacle to development work.

"Last month, a project involving about Tk1.0 billion (Tk 100 crore) was approved for development works of the municipality. The first phase of the five-year project will cost

Tk 200 to Tk 222 million (Tk 20 to 22 crore) within the next two to three months. With that money, we can start some work," he said.

Work on various highways in Pabna has come to a standstill.

Sources in the Pabna Roads and Highways Department said it is not possible to do any major work with half the amount of funds received after August 5 compared to the amount received during the previous government. What is being done is being done in small amounts.

Abul Mansur Ahmed, executive engineer of the Pabna Roads and Highway, told The Financial Express, "There is a delay in the arrival of funds due to the situation. Work on various roads will start only if the government releases funds."

Assistant Professor of Economics Department of Pabna Degree College, Abul Kalam Azad, told The Financial Express, "We are completely deprived of the kind of opportunities that Pabna municipality deserves. There is no way to walk on any road.

"In my view, the people of all departments are sitting with their hands folded. I think there is no accountability for their actions. I think the officials are sitting around blaming the government and they are mainly looking at the previous government."

Barakat Ullah Fahad, Pabna district coordinator of the anti-discrimination movement, told said, "We have received complaints against officials of various departments in Pabna. They are working slowly to deny our revolution so that the interim government falls into disrepair. I will speak at the center about all these officials."

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