DHAKA is not a clean city by any standard, but it could have been a much cleaner city, if we, the citizens of Dhaka, could behave more responsibly. Had we cared a little more and were a bit more conscious about the importance of clean environment, things would be a lot more different. Sadly, we do not see any change in the attitude of the citizens as they continue to make the city unclean and dirty by throwing waste all over the place. They hardly think about disposing of those wastes to designated points.
Sometimes some of the residents or their employees are seen carrying domestic waste up to a dustbin, but they do not go near the bin and instead of throwing those wastes into the bin they discard the waste around and make a few yards around the bins dirty. There are some notifications issued by the authorities from time to time regarding things to do to keep the city clean and some awareness campaigns are also launched, but all such efforts in the past made very little impact on the minds of the citizens. This is the unfortunate part of the whole story. If we act as responsible citizens, and perform our civic responsibilities properly, things are will change.
We certainly do not want our children to grow up in an unhealthy atmosphere created by an unclean environment. We want them to grow up as responsible citizens and contribute their mite for the welfare of the country. But to do so, we have to learn to perform our civic responsibilities. Let us not forget the famous saying that "Cleanliness is next to godliness"
Sojol Chowdhury
Badda, Dhaka
