National Desk :
A road has got decorative looks in Rajshahi city with arrangement of specialized street lights besides plantation of colourful flowers drawing the attention of the city dwellers and many of the onlookers.
Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) has recently elevated the 4.2-kilometer road from Bilsimla to Kasiadanga crossing to 80-feet wide from 30-feet along with four lanes at a cost of Taka 52.75 crore. City Mayor AHM Khairuzzaman Liton told BSS that 174 eye-catching poles were installed assembling 348 butterfly-like LED bulbs on the road.
There is provision of automatic on-off systems of the power-saving bulbs through an autologic controller. Varieties of ornamental flower plants including sunflower were planted on the divider of the road that enhanced its beautification to a greater extent.
Currently, the sunflowers have become eye-catching. “We have constructed a 10-feet wide footpath on both sides of the road and another eight-foot bicycle lane on the south side,” said Mayor Liton, adding plants and trees were planted for greenery.
Listing various other development projects Liton said, a 6.793-kilometer east-west four-lane connecting road has been constructed along with a 202.5-meter flyover with a 120-meter ramp at Budhpara Railway crossing recently at a cost of TK 189.34 crore. Some 32,446 trees were planted besides creating scores of green zones through councillors, officers and employees of the city corporation.
Tree plantation activities on vacant places, road dividers and footpaths are being conducted in the current year. 6,000 flower and other ornamental and decorative tree saplings were already planted till August last, he added.
Now, road dividers and islands on around 24-kilometer roads in the city were greened. Varieties of decorative and beautification trees were planted on the dividers, islands and footpaths of the city’s main roads.
Padma riverbank adjacent to the Shaheb Bazar area of the divisional town has turned into an attractive tourist and recreational spot as the city corporation implemented a beautification project there.
Under the project amusement spots, open stage, gallery, park, bridge, walkway and other need-based infrastructures were constructed at a cost of around Tk 42.2 million. Mayor Liton said the new infrastructure and facilities are encouraging an increased number of people to pass their leisure with families and friends enjoying the beauty of the Padma.
Borokuthi river bank and Lalon Shah River Resort were also decorated with a new look to attract more visitors and facilitate the cultural organisations to arrange various programmes to attract the visitors.
The city corporation is going to have a new look to the Sonadighi, a traditional pond in Rajshahi city, as it has been implementing a gigantic scheme to this end as soon as possible.
Mayor Liton added that Rajshahi City Corporation has planned to reclaim around 12 square kilometers of char Land of Padma River for developing a satellite town adjacent to the city protection embankment.
As the river’s main flow turned towards its right bank, the satellite town might be built on the left bank. Liton said the part of the river near the left bank, where flood water remains for less than a month every year, would be turned into a huge lake.
The lake would stand between the satellite town and the city protection embankment and there would be a bridge to the newly developed city, he added. “Rajshahi would be beautiful if we can properly execute the plan,” the mayor said, adding that “the city’s accommodation problems will be eased as well.
Rajshahi will be transformed into a more cleaned, green, attractive, planned, developed and habitable city and efforts are being progressed to this end, he added.
