State minister warns immediate suspension over municipal service failures
State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Mir Shahe Alam today warned that officials responsible for any disruption in municipal waste management or civic services will be suspended immediately.
“Departmental and administrative action will be taken against those in charge of municipalities that fail to implement modern waste management systems and environment-friendly initiatives,” he said.
The state minister made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at a national workshop held at Kamrul Islam Siddique Auditorium in LGED Bhaban, Agargaon, here.
Senior Secretary of Local Government Division Md. Shahidul Hassan presided over the meeting.
Highlighting a key challenge in urban management, Shahe Alam said although waste management is a primary municipal function, most municipalities lack designated landfills.
Modern landfills must be established promptly, enabling the use of modern technology to generate electricity and fertilizer from waste, he added.
Shahe Alam said while municipal master plans are of vital importance, political influence in the past led to major irregularities in the selection process. Consequently, many deserving and capable municipalities have been deprived of the benefits that a master plan provides, he said.
“In principle, district-level municipalities and 'Class A' municipalities should have been prioritised for inclusion in this list from the very beginning.”
The state minister said development projects worth Taka 1,20,000 crore are currently underway across the country, being implemented by the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) to improve infrastructure.
He instructed the officials concerned to focus not only on road construction but also on developing children’s parks and graveyards, ensuring the supply of safe drinking water, preserving canals and water bodies, and undertaking large-scale tree plantation.
Emphasising a 'zero-tolerance' policy regarding administrative harassment in birth and death registration and the provision of civic services, the state minister said there have been reports that some municipalities are deliberately suspending services or engaging in corruption to extract illicit gains from citizens.
“This will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Furthermore, action will be taken against municipalities that have left funds allocated for solar panels unused,” he said.
Highlighting the social protection schemes initiated by the government, he said as part of efforts toward the economic empowerment of women, 'Family Cards' will be distributed to the female heads of 4 crore households over the next four years.
This year alone, 41 lakh women will benefit from this initiative, with an allocation of Taka 13,000 crore, he said.
Additionally, he proposed incorporating training in languages such as Arabic, Malay, Korean, or Japanese — in addition to English — to help youth develop skills and secure employment.
He also mentioned plans to provide a state-funded honorarium to the heads of over 3,50,000 religious institutions and to allocate Taka 30 lakh per union for the renovation of religious places of worship.
The workshop was attended by senior officials from the Local Government Division, Additional Chief Engineers and Executive Engineers from the LGED, faculty members from different universities, as well as administrators, chief executives, and engineers from several municipalities.
