Hurried cleanup ahead of the state minister’s visit to the marketplace

After reports emerged that State Minister for Local Government Mir Shahe Alam and Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Administrator Md Shafiqul Islam Khan would visit Uttara Diabari Market this Wednesday afternoon, a sudden and vigorous cleanup operation began in the market area.

However, until noon, waste and garbage from the market were still lying near the Uttara Center Metro Station. City corporation workers started cleaning the area before the state minister and the administrator’s arrival.

According to city corporation sources, the state minister and the administrator were scheduled to inspect the market today at 3:00 pm. Around 1:20 pm, an urgent message was sent in a city corporation WhatsApp group informing officials to prepare for news coverage.

Shortly after this, around 2:15 pm, sanitation workers arrived at the market and began their work. At around 2:30 pm, a payload machine was brought in. Rapid efforts then began to remove accumulated waste from the roads, clean garbage, and tidy various parts of the market.

The cleanup drive was being led by DNCC Chief Property Officer Shawkat Osman. He was accompanied by Deputy Chief Waste Management Officer Mofizur Rahman Bhuiyan. Under their supervision, workers were carrying out the cleaning in different areas of the market.

Around 2:30 pm, a payload machine was seen removing piles of waste from the roads. Cleaners were using brooms and other equipment to clean various sections of the market, while officials remained on-site to supervise the work.

Market traders said that although waste had been piling up in different parts of the market for a long time, large-scale cleaning operations suddenly began today. According to them, the hurried cleanup initiative was undertaken in preparation for the high-level inspection. Relevant officials of the DNCC could not be reached for comment on the matter.