The Sylhet City Corporation (SCC) will take new projects for the development of the city soon while works for its beautification ahead of the upcoming T-20 World Cup are going on in full swing, said mayor of the city Ariful Haque Chowdhury in an exclusive interview with The New Nation.
But the development activities of the city are going on slowly for lack of logistic support from the government as many initiatives taken by the SCC for the development are in a steady condition, said the mayor.
SCC lays all its focus on the city development, which faces impediment mainly for fund crunch, lamented Ariful Haque while giving his views about the progress in the development works of the city since he took over as the mayor in September 20, 2013.
Importance will have to be attached to removing water-logging problems for which public sufferings mountduring the rainy season, said the mayor.
The city areas mostly go under water after a short rainfall and the reason for this is mainly poor drainage system as most of the major drains and canals then get clogged with garbage.
Ariful Haque claimed after assuming office as the mayor he started works of recovering the grabbed canals and drains in the city and excavating those to ease water-logging problems.
Replying to a query, he said the city corporation authorities have started works for improvement of the sewerage system through freeing the canals and drains from the illegal occupation and excavating those.
He said, ‘We have already cleaned ‘Gabiarkhal’ and ‘Ratnachara’ canals which are the main waste water outlets of the city and the cleaning and excavating works are going on and an airways company will provide fund for a new excavator machine for the purpose soon.’
‘Sylhet is an unplanned city where traffic congestions are commonplace. Most of the roads are too narrow for two vehicles to pass together,’ he added.
But the SCC is trying to solve these problems as soon as possible and to this effect it is conducting a survey in association with the Roads and Highway Department, the mayor informed the newspaper. Ariful Haque hoped that the traffic system will improve gradually with some schemes implemented.
Also beautification works of the city roads and others sites are going on in full swing ahead of the upcoming T20 World Cup-2014, Sylhet being its host, he said.
The mayor added shortly after taking office he declared a ban on the movement of the easy-bikes and battery-run three-wheelers on the city roads, which has not come into effect yet.
‘But for its implementation, we have to wait until the High Court’s order,’ he said further.
Replying to a question, he said the SCC would rehabilitate the hawkers, evicted from the footpaths, in the cooperation-run hawkers market at Laldighirpar in the city after its reconstruction.
SCC has given a permission to run their business temporarily beside the road in front of the Post Office only on the Thursdays and Fridays after 4:00pm, he added.
