Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Thursday said the government has taken a plan to shift Rohingya refugees to suitable places from the existing camps at Khutuppalang and Nayapara in Cox's Bazar, reports UNB.
The Prime Minister said this at a meeting with officials of the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief during her visit to the ministry at Bangladesh Secretariat Thursday.
PM's press secretary AKM Shameem Chowdhury briefed reporters after the meeting.
Sheikh Hasina said the Rohingya refugees would be shifted to a wider area as they are now living in a very inhumane condition in those slums.
The refugee camp areas near Cox's Bazar sea beach would be utilised for the development of tourism, she said.
Some 34,000 Rohingya refugees are now officially living in Bangladesh. However, the unofficial number of the Rohingya refugees is 0.2-0.3 million.
Describing Bangladesh as an internationally-recognised role model in tackling both natural and manmade disasters, Hasina said there should be more preparedness for facing any strong earthquake.
"Disasters can come at any moment. So, we'll have to remain alert all the time. There should be more preparedness for facing earthquakes," she said citing the growing risk of earthquakes in the country.
She also reaffirmed her government's resolve to free the country from poverty braving all disasters.
"Bangladesh is now an internationally-recognised role model in tackling both natural and manmade disasters. Once Bangladesh was known as a country of militants, terrorists and bombings, but we've been able to elevate the country's image to a respectable position erasing all sorts of bad names," Hasina said.
Renewing her pledge to turn Bangladesh into a mid-income country by 2021 and a developed one by 2041, she said some 50 million people have graduated from the lower class to the middle class over the last five and a half years while the current rate of poverty is 24.8 per cent.
Hasina said it will not be difficult to free the country from poverty if the assistance, no matter how much, being provided to people from the government are utilised properly.
Mentioning that her government has been able to ensure food security, she said the country's food grain production is now about 36.8 million (3.68 crore) tonnes while the government has also taken a decision to export 50,000 tonnes of coarse rice to Sri Lanka. "It's a big thing to enhance food production in a country which is disaster-prone one."
The Prime Minister also highlighted the construction of silos and godowns with financial assistance from Japan to store food for up to three years so that the country does not need to beg or seek help from others during any disaster.
Noting that there was almost nothing for the Fire Service and Civil Defense prior to taking of office in her previous term in 2009, she said work is under way to set up fire service and civil defense station in every upazila.
She also stressed considering the provision of having water bodies while constructing any structure and building. Referring to this year's floods victims, Hasina said her government had come up with food and necessary relief materials after the flood and directed the Ministry to take initiative to build homes for those who have lost their accommodation in river erosion after the flood, and the government will provide khas land, if necessary.
Mentioning that some 6,000 cyclone shelters are needed to protect those living in coastal areas from natural disasters, the Prime Minister said some 3,751 cyclone shelters have already been constructed while the construction of some 629 cyclone shelters are nearing completion.
In this connection, the Prime Minister stressed that cyclone shelters should be built considering the necessity of actual vulnerable people to disasters without constructing those here and there rather.
Considering the importance of disaster management and relief in the wake of various natural disasters, Hasina said her government in 2012 formed a separate Ministry and a Disaster Management Department to make the disaster management activities more integrated, goal-based and dynamic ones.
She said the Awami League government in 1997 had formed the Standing
Orders on Disaster-SOD and stressed the need for updating the SOD considering the various contexts of disasters.
During the 1998 countrywide flood, Hasina recalled, the BBC and some other development partners, including the World Bank, had apprehended that about 20 million people would die from hunger. "But, due to our timely steps that did happen...we proved in 1998 that if there's a will any disaster can be faced."
Referring to the successful rescue operations in the 'Rana Plaza' building collapse last year in Savar, Hasina said the rescue operations lasted for 21 days on humanitarian ground which is very rare in the world.
The Prime Minister also highlighted various steps and achievements of her government in tackling natural disasters including gradually imparting training to some 62,000 urban volunteers, undertaking of a Tk 1.59 billion project to procure search and rescue equipments, introduction of Interactive Voice Response (IVR), Food For Work, TR, VGF, GR programmes to help the poor as well as plan to set up tourist police and bay watch.
Disaster Management and Relief Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya delivered the address of welcome on the occasion. Ministry Secretary Dr Mesbahul Alam was present.
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