Local government elections in phases from Sept or Oct: Mirza Fakhrul

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said that local government elections across the country may start in phases from September or October after the monsoon season of this year. There is a plan to complete the elections of union parishad, municipality, upazila, district parishad and city corporation within the next one year.

The Local Government Minister said these things in response to a question by Jamalpur-3 constituency MP Mostafizur Rahman Babul during the Question and Answer Session in the National Parliament on Tuesday (June 16). The question was raised on the table with Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed in the chair.

Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said that these elections will be held in phases based on the availability of the budget. Union parishad elections may be held first. Then, elections of other local government bodies will be held in phases. Elections of 13 city corporations of the country, including the newly formed Bogura City Corporation, will also be completed within the same time frame.

In response to a question from MP Mohammad Shamim Kaiser, the minister said that Tk 6 lakh has already been allocated for each Upazila Parishad to build an inspection room inside the Upazila Parishad for senior employees including MPs in all upazilas of the country.

In response to a question from Nilofar Chowdhury Moni, MP for the reserved women's seat, the minister said that currently the daily water demand in Dhaka North and South City Corporations is 320-325 million liters, although this demand varies depending on the season. The current daily water production capacity of Dhaka WASA is 295-300 million liters. PAC, alum sulfate and chlorination methods are used for water purification and the quality is ensured in WASA's laboratory following the guidelines of the World Health Organization and then supplied. 40-50 water samples are tested every day.

In response to a question from MP Selima Rahman, the minister said that in Dhaka North City Corporation, waste collection from houses is carried out by private individuals and organizations in vans to the secondary transfer station. The process of bringing these institutions under contract with the city corporation is underway. Once the contract is completed, the issue of environmentally friendly waste disposal will be considered.

In response to a question from MP Nipun Roy Chowdhury, the minister said that an initiative has been taken to create birth and death registration software version 2. Online payment and block chain technology will be integrated into the new system so that the log of information changes can be tracked. In addition, regular training is being provided to registrars and registration assistants.

In response to a question from Naogaon-6 MP Sheikh Md. Rezaul Islam, State Minister for Youth and Sports Aminul Haque said that public awareness workshops are organized in each district to make the youth aware of mobile addiction and drug addiction. Awareness campaigns are also being conducted through registered youth organizations.

In response to a question from Munshiganj-1 MP Md. Abdullah, the state minister said that a DPP for a project to increase anti-drug training and public awareness through youth organizations in border districts has been formulated and a feasibility study has been completed.