Staff Correspondent

A 26-foot-wide road is being constructed in the Ghuntighar area of Gandaria in the capital following the eviction of drug dens, with the removal of illegal structures along the railway line progressing rapidly, Dhaka-6 MP Ishraque Hossain said on Monday.

He expressed hope that the road would ease movement for local residents and help law enforcement agencies strengthen patrols to control drug-related activities in the area.

Ishraque made the remarks while talking to reporters after visiting Ghuntighar in Gandaria at noon.

He said drug dens had developed across an area of nearly 2.5 kilometres along the railway line, where illegal structures had been built on railway land. Drug consumption, sale and various other illegal activities were carried out there.

The eviction drive began in the Shyampur section, he said.

Ishraque said the two weeks of eviction activities had nearly cleared the way for constructing the 26-foot-wide road, with only a few structures yet to be removed. Most of those structures are illegal and temporary, he added.

Once built, the road would open up connecting routes to different neighbourhoods, making movement easier for residents. It would also facilitate the entry and exit of ambulances and other emergency vehicles, he said.

He said there were also plans to install streetlights and CCTV cameras in the area alongside the road construction. These facilities would make regular patrols by law enforcement agencies easier and help curb drug-related activities.

Reiterating his commitment to continuing the anti-drug drive, Ishraque said residents of the wider Gandaria area under his constituency, would benefit from the initiative.

He said several important educational institutions were located in the area, where drug-related activities had been spreading and affecting nearby residential neighbourhoods.

The MP said drug spots across his constituency would be dismantled completely in phases, stressing that residents, public representatives and law enforcement agencies must work together to achieve the goal.

He said the fight against drugs would not be limited to a single eviction drive, adding, “I had announced that this fight against drugs would continue.”

Ishraque also said State Minister for Railways and Dhaka-9 MP Habibur Rahman Habib was assisting with the road construction work.

Dhaka South City BNP Member Secretary Tanvir Ahmed Robin, Deputy Commissioner of Police of the Wari zone, officers-in-charge of Gandaria and Shyampur police stations, and other concerned officials were present during the visit.