Inu\\\'s suggestions on impounded vehicles

Information Minister Hasanul Hoque Inu says he felt the 'loneliness' of vehicles seeing a series of photographs of them rotting in police impound.
He suggests laws be amended to allow the use of such vehicles instead of leaving them to rot, reports bdnews24.com.
The minister inaugurated an exhibition at the Dhaka Art Centre on Friday that showcased 37 photographs taken by journalist Shafiq Rahman titled 'Jontrojaner Japito Jibon' (Life of the motor vehicles).
The minister remarked while looking at the photographs that whether at the end of their lives or stuck in legal limbo, these vehicles had "a solitude" of their own.
'Looking at these photos I feel as though the poor vehicles are trapped alone in a jungle, although they are not humans," he remarked.
Inu complimented the photographer on being able to capture the expression of solitude in these vehicles.
"As much as this has taught me to think, it will surely educate the government to think about the issue," he hoped.
The information minister put forward three suggestions to the government.
He said the government could take measures to reuse the vehicles after their lifespan in a planned way.
"The vehicles in police impound can either be given back to the owners or auctioned off immediately instead of letting them fall into disuse and go to waste," he said.
"Campaigns should be undertaken to raise awareness on vehicle rules and regulations to reduce the number of accidents and cases," he added.
He also suggested that vehicles that had reached the end of their lifespan could be recycled.
"As a politician I feel that the vehicles that are currently in police impound should not become a wasted resource. While the cases go on the workable vehicles should be utilised properly."
"It should be done legally and immediately. Bangladesh cannot turn into a dump-yard for useless vehicles.
"Dumping broken-down vehicles here and there not only causes environmental pollution but is also hazardous," he observed.
Photographer Shafiq Rahman said according to the road transport authority, in July there were 813,184 cars in Dhaka. Every year 10,000 cars are added to this and vehicle-related crimes were also growing proportionately.
"There have been 893,935 cases filed under Dhaka West Traffic Division since 2009. The government has collected fines of about Tk 77 million in these cases," he said.
From 2010 until August this year, 57,503 cars and rickshaws have been seized by the Dhaka West Traffic Division. Outside this, many other vehicles are seized as evidence or due to the absence of the legal owners.
MP Kazi Rosy, architect Shamsul Wares and artist Syed Hasan Mahmud spoke at the event, among others.
The exhibition showcasing the photographs of the Probe Magazine's Senior Correspondent Shafiq Rahman will run through to September 11.