Desk Report,
CHSIK Mayor vents anger at WASA and CD at press conference
Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) Mayor Shahadat Hossain has alleged that WASA is not following any rules in cutting roads in the city’s Halishahar area. It is cutting roads there with tin fences as it pleases. And it is not repairing the cut roads properly. WASA has ruined Halishahar. If this continues, there is no choice but to take legal action against WASA.
CHSIK Mayor vents anger at WASA and CD at press conference
Chattogram City Corporation Mayor Shahadat Hossain said these words angrily at a press conference on Sunday afternoon. The press conference was organized at the temporary head office of the City Corporation in Tiger Pass after a recent visit to Canada. Chittagong WASA is implementing a project titled ‘Establishment of Sewerage System in Chittagong Metropolitan City’. WASA is cutting roads in the Halishahar area of the city under this project. Work on the project began in 2022. However, WASA’s Superintending Engineer and Project Director Ariful Islam claimed that the roads are being cut in coordination with the City Corporation. He told Prothom Alo that the City Corporation had asked to stop cutting the road for four months during the monsoon. But the contractor of this project is foreign. If the work is stopped like this, there are various complications including extending the time. Therefore, it was decided to cut 18 kilometers of the road instead of 50 kilometers. This is being done with the knowledge of the City Corporation. Although the road has been temporarily repaired, it is not sustainable due to the rain. However, it will be fixed after the monsoon.
At a press conference today, Shahadat Hossain highlighted the experience of his visit to Canada, discussions with various responsible persons including the city mayor there, and various steps taken for the development of Chittagong city.
On July 9, a three-year-old child, Humaira, died after falling into a drain in the Anandipur area of Halishahar in the city. The City Corporation did not find any responsibility in the investigation of the incident. The investigation committee blamed the family’s indifference and the mother’s workplace for the child’s death. When asked about this at the press conference, Mayor Shahadat Hossain said, “There is no opportunity to put slabs in the drain. There is no way to avoid the responsibility of the child’s family and his mother’s workplace. They needed to keep an eye on the child. The family is responsible for looking after the children. It is not possible for the City Corporation to keep a guard behind every child. This is absurd. But if an adult had died like this, the City Corporation would have taken responsibility.’
Mayor Shahadat Hossain also expressed his anger at the role of the Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) at the press conference. He said, ‘How did they get approval to build a building for a garment factory in such an area? How did they build a commercial building? These are the responsibility of the CDA to look after. I want to know that from the CDA.’op
