The people of Bangladesh are always confronting natural disasters and the infrastructure in disaster-prone regions should be built accordingly, says Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, bdnews24.com reports.
The prime minister visited flood-affected areas in Netrokona, Sunamganj and Sylhet on Tuesday and later gave instructions to the local administration and Awami League leaders to combat the flooding.
“We shouldn’t worry when the floods hit, as the people of Bangladesh always face natural disasters. But we need to build our infrastructure accordingly,” she said.
Instead of raising the ground to build roads in Sylhet, all future roads will be ‘elevated', Hasina said. Elevated roads are usually not damaged by floods and can be used for travel even when the floods hit, she said.
Authorities will also ensure dredging to maintain the navigability of the rivers.
“Not only do we need capital dredging - which is done as a one-time thing - we also need maintenance dredging to continue.”
Hasina recalled her childhood experiences of travelling to Sylhet for holidays when she saw big drains in front of houses to ensure that water flows out.
“They used to have big slabs covering those drains. Unfortunately, those drains don’t exist anymore. So many buildings have been constructed that there is no way for the water to flow out. How will the water recede?”
The prime minister said those who built structures in the past gave thought to nature, but now people do not give it the proper attention.
Hasina left Dhaka by helicopter on Tuesday morning to observe the flooding in the Netrokona, Sunamganj and Sylhet districts.
She landed at Osmani International Airport in Sylhet shortly before 10 am after inspecting the flood-hit areas, said Sylhet Additional Divisional Commissioner Debjit Singha.
Monsoon downpours triggered catastrophic flooding in the northeast region, leaving millions of people stranded amid fast-rising waters and swollen rivers.
Sylhet, Sunamganj and Netrokona, have been reeling from devastating floods since late last week. Floods later spread to the northern districts of Kurigram and Gaibandha. On Monday, Feni and Cumilla in the southeast were also affected by floods.
Speaking at a programme in Dhaka earlier on Sunday, Hasina said the government was fully prepared to combat floods in Sylhet and Sunamganj.
"This time, the floods have been quite severe,” she said, adding, "We’ve engaged the local administration, Army, Navy, Air Force and other agencies to rescue flood-affected people and ensure proper relief work."
The Awami League and its affiliate organisations have been assisting in the relief work. The government is prepared to ensure food, oral saline and drinking water to all, she said.