KURIGRAM, July 17 (UNB): National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener Nahid Islam on Thursday alleged that the current government has failed to eliminate the longstanding regional and economic disparities affecting Bangladesh's northern districts.
He also claimed that the government's handling of the proposed Teesta Mega Project reflected the same discriminatory approach, saying the Prime Minister's recent visit to China yielded no significant progress on the Teesta issue.
Nahid made the remarks while addressing a farmers' rally as the chief guest at Togoraihat Bimukhi High School ground in Kurigram town in the afternoon. The rally was organised to mark the launch of the central committee of Jatiya Krishak Shakti, an associate body of the NCP. He alleged that the government had deliberately deprived Kurigram and the greater Rangpur region of adequate development allocations because most parliamentary seats in the northern districts are represented by opposition lawmakers.
"No major budget has been allocated for this region, and it has been neglected in large-scale national development plans. We will not accept such discrimination," he said.
Recalling the July Uprising, Nahid said the people of northern Bangladesh had made significant sacrifices for democracy.
"The brave son of this region, Abu Sayeed, was among the first to sacrifice his life during the July movement. People here have repeatedly exercised their democratic right to elect their representatives through struggle, yet they continue to be neglected in terms of development," he said.
Criticising the government's initiatives for farmers, Nahid said the proposed farmer card programme would not adequately address the real needs of the agricultural community.
"We are not opposed to the farmer card itself, but the limited financial benefits it offers are insufficient," he alleged.
Following the rally, the NCP announced a seven-member partial central committee of its newly launched associate body, Jatiya Krishak Shakti.
