PM pledges development for a better Dhaka

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday said that the government is dedicated to transforming Dhaka into a city that ensures a high quality of life for its residents.
"The people of this area (Old Dhaka) will benefit and can live a beautiful life. We are working toward this goal," she stated.
The Prime Minister made the remarks during a program inaugurating several development projects in Old Dhaka, including the construction of a new 10-storey Bangabazar Nagar Wholesale Market, reports UNB.
The original market was destroyed by a devastating fire on April 4 last year.
The other projects include Valiant Freedom Fighter Sheikh Fazlul Haque Moni Sarani (an 8-lane road), Hossain Shaheed Suhrawardy Shishu Udyan, and Nazrul Sarobor.

Sheikh Hasina also highlighted the government's initiatives to improve connectivity between Dhaka and other districts.
"We want to build a ring road in Dhaka to facilitate easier inter-district communication," she said, acknowledging the previous lack of significant road infrastructure in the eastern and western parts of Dhaka.
"The government has already built a metro rail, expressway, and many other roads, with several more metro rail projects under construction to ease road communication," she added.
She noted that the division of Dhaka into North and South aims to provide better services to the people.
"For the betterment of the city dwellers, the government has relocated the Dhaka Central Jail to Keraniganj," she said. In its place, a museum, a school, and a children's park have been built. There are also plans to construct an amusement park there, she said.
The Prime Minister mentioned the government's allocation of land to build a modern campus for Jagannath University. "We have already prepared the design for Jagannath University, and the work in this regard will be completed quickly," she assured.
Sheikh Hasina called upon Dhaka city residents to do their part in maintaining a beautiful and healthy environment. She urged everyone to keep their homes and surrounding areas clean to prevent waterlogging and the breeding of mosquitoes.
A video documentary showcasing the development projects under the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) was screened at the event.
LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Md Tazul Islam, DSCC Mayor Barrister Fazle Noor Taposh, Dhaka-8 constituency lawmaker AFM Bahauddin Nasim, and Local Government Division Secretary Muhammad Ibrahim also spoke at the function.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Hasina said that the Awami League government has taken significant measures to shut down arms smuggling routes through Bangladesh to India, fostering peace in India's northeastern states.
"Since coming to power, the Awami League has closed down the routes used for arms smuggling through Bangladesh," she told the same programme.
The Prime Minister emphasised the impact of the Awami League's efforts to curb arms smuggled to various Indian separatist groups, including the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA).
"As a result, peace prevails in the seven sister states of India. The Awami League has done this, and it is a significant accomplishment," she added.
The ULFA is an armed militant organization operating in Assam, seeking to establish an independent sovereign nation for the Assamese people through armed struggle. The Government of India banned ULFA in 1990, citing it as a terrorist organization.
The seven sister states of India are Mizoram, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland.