Not even an inch of canal space will be evicted — Rezaul Karim

SD Life:

Chittagong City Corporation Mayor Bir Muktijoddha Alhaj M. Rezaul Karim Chowdhury has warned that illegal occupations and installations will be removed from the one-inch stretch of canals, the city’s main waterway. No matter how big the influence, no one will be given a discount in this case. The position of the boundaries of the canals as determined by the design of the CS and RS surveys must be ascertained.

He added that many canals flowing through the city have become extinct due to the aggression of land robbers. More than 8-10 feet on either side of what is still flowing has been left unoccupied, and illegal installations have sprung up. Its adverse effects are civic relief. In the interest of this city, I will ensure the relief of the citizens by evicting illegal occupants from both sides of the canal at any cost.

He said this while inspecting the Chasik canal cleaning and garbage removal activities in the area adjacent to the pool of South Bakalia Ishaq in the city on Thursday morning.

At that time, he said to the locals, the water of Bakalia area falls into Karnafuli river through Mirzakhal-Birjakhal-middle canal. Due to the unawareness of the locals, these three canals have become garbage dumps. In other words, some locals are responsible for taking away the navigability of these canals. Even after cleaning the canals repeatedly, the canals go back to their previous condition within a few days. Chasik cannot take the responsibility alone. The main responsibility lies with the locals. If they fail I will be forced to be strict.

He further said that CDA is implementing mega projects under the supervision of the army to alleviate water logging in the city. Its successful implementation will bring blessings for us. There is temporary suffering for any great achievement. This is also happening in this case and it has to be accepted. However, I would hope that the project implementation work is temporarily halted due to the monsoon, so all the parts of the canal that have been dammed or blocked in the interest of project implementation will be removed for the time being. Chowk authorities also agree on this. So if the removal of the barrier is completed quickly, the suffering of the citizens will be alleviated.

Welcoming the ongoing Elevator Expressway project, the mayor said that if it is implemented, traffic congestion will be reduced and the airport can be reached from the city center in just half an hour. But I hope this end of the city starts from the other side of the Tigerpass Over Bridge. As a result, the eye-catching natural beauty of Tigerpass and Overbridge will be protected and will not be scratched. He added that crime incidents are happening on flyovers these days. The moving vehicle is being robbed and being the victim of a criminal accident. He urged the law enforcement agencies to be vigilant in this regard.

Responding to a question from reporters on the proposal to move the central Shaheed Minar to Chasik for the time being, the mayor said, “Whether to move the Shaheed Minar in Chittagong with cultural activists, freedom fighters, politicians or well-wishers.” A unanimous decision to move will be made. Because Shaheed Minar is a sacred place of our emotions.

Present at the time – Ward Council. Shahidul Alam, Md. Nurul Alam, reserved councilor Shaheen Akhter Rozi, chief engineer Rafiqul Islam Manik, mayor’s private secretary Muhammad Abul Hashem, deputy chief cleaning officer Morshedul Alam Chowdhury and others.