PM Tarique Rahman on Dhaka streets for 4 hours to inspect waste management, two officials withdrawn

Without informing anyone in advance, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman toured different areas of the capital to inspect the removal of sacrificial animal waste following Eid-ul-Azha. He visited various parts of Dhaka for nearly four hours on Friday from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm. The prime minister reportedly drove the vehicle himself.

According to sources in the Prime Minister’s Press Wing, those accompanying him in the vehicle included State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Mir Shahe Alam, Administrator of the Dhaka South City Corporation Md Abdus Salam, Special Secretary of the BNP National Executive Committee Muhammad Belayet Hossain Mridha, and the Prime Minister’s Private Secretary-2 Mehedul Islam.

When asked, Mir Shahe Alam told Prothom Alo, “Prime Minister Tarique Rahman asked me and Dhaka South City Administrator Abdus Salam to come in front of his residence. When we arrived, he asked us to send our vehicles away. Then he took us into his car. We had no idea why the prime minister had called us or where he intended to go.”

“Later, we saw that he had gone out to directly inspect how various ongoing development works in Dhaka and the management of sacrificial animal waste were progressing. He expressed dissatisfaction after seeing the condition in several areas,” he added.

During the visit, sacrificial animal waste, along with previously accumulated garbage, was seen lying on roads in areas including Hatirpool, Elephant Road, Green Road, Farmgate, and Karwan Bazar. The state minister said the prime minister noticed negligence in waste removal in these areas. Following his instructions, two regional executive officers from Dhaka North and South City Corporations were immediately attached to the Ministry of Public Administration. Departmental action has also been ordered against them over allegations of negligence in duty.

The officials reassigned to the Ministry of Public Administration are Md Sadequl Rahman, Regional Executive Officer of Zone-5 of the Dhaka North City Corporation, and Kazi Saleh Mustanzir, Regional Executive Officer of Zone-1 of the Dhaka South City Corporation. Both hold the rank of deputy secretary.

Sources at the Local Government Division said Dhaka’s two city corporations had already been instructed to ensure the quick removal of sacrificial animal waste. However, shortcomings in implementing those instructions were revealed during the prime minister’s surprise inspection.