Municipalities, UPs being abolished : City Corporation with Savar, Ashulia, Keraniganj to be 'A' class Pourashova
Sheikh AK Azad, Savar
The government has taken a policy decision to merge Savar Municipality and Ashulia into Savar City Corporation and Keraniganj under 'A' class municipality or Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC).
A notification in this regard has been issued by the Field Administration Liaison Division of the Cabinet Division after the approval of the Chief Adviser on October 12 signed by Deputy Secretary of the Cabinet Department Mahmud Ullah Maruf.
As a result of this decision of the government, the activities of Savar Municipality and Union Parishad will be abolished. The government started implementing this proposal based on the first-party fortnightly confidential report by the Divisional Commissioner in September this year.
The proposal submitted to the Chief Adviser said that unplanned industrialization, educational institutions, business centers and pressure of population have turned Savar into a large urban area. Although there is a municipality in Savar, it is totally inadequate compared to the needs of the citizens. Municipalities' limited resources and manpower are not able to meet the civic needs of the growing population. A large number of garment industries, slums and residential areas have developed in Ashulia region of Savar. Union Parishad also lacks the capacity to ensure civic services such as planned urbanization, waste management, traffic control, health and education facilities, safe water supply or environmental protection in Ashulia area. As a result, the people of Ashulia area have to suffer constantly due to traffic congestion, inadequate sanitation and infrastructure problems.
On the other hand, Keraniganj Upazila is facing unplanned rapid urbanization due to the expansion and population pressure of Dhaka city. Basic civic services such as roads, drainage, water supply, waste management or healthcare cannot be provided due to the absence of institutions like municipalities or city corporations. Keraniganj can be developed as a modern and vibrant suburb next to the capital if planned development activities are undertaken.
In this situation, a proposal was presented to form Savar City Corporation by amalgamating Savar Municipality and Ashulia and Keraniganj to be included under 'A' class municipality or South City Corporation.
Later after approval of the proposal by the Chief Adviser, the Cabinet Division is asked to inform the Cabinet Division about the implementation progress by taking necessary action on the proposal.
When contacted, Dhaka Divisional Commissioner Sharaf Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury said that this decision of the government is groundbreaking. As a result, the long-standing deprivation of the people of the underdeveloped and neglected regions will be removed to some extent and the civic benefits and dignity they deserve can be ensured.
Adding two upazilas Dhamrai and Singair to Savar City Corporation would have been a more up-to-date decision.
