The Awami League government, in its different tenures from 1997, under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, rehabilitated a total of 8,29,607 families so far providing them with lands and houses.
As per Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s desire that none will remain homeless or landless, his daughter Sheikh Hasina completed the rehabilitation processes through Ashrayan Prakalpa and different other projects.
Bangabandhu had introduced introduced the rehabilitation programme for homeless people in 1972.
But unfortunately the project could not be completed due to his tragic assassination along with most of his family members on August 15 in 1975.
Following Bangabandhu's footprints, her daughter Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina took the initiative to provide ownership of houses and lands to homeless and landless people.
After Sheikh Hasina came to power for the first time in 1996, she resumed the rehabilitation programme in 1997 through the Ashrayan Prakalpa.
According to sources in the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ashrayan project run by the PMO has so far rehabilitated 5,55,617 families with semi-pukka houses on two-decimal of lands with their ownership alongside free connection of electricity, water supply and other required amenities.
Under the Ashrayan project and other programmes, a total of 82,9607 families have been rehabilitated so far since 1,997.
Besides, under the Ashrayan Prakalpa-2, total number of beneficiary families now stands at 2,38,851.
PMO sources said with this rehabilitation projects, so far 41, 48000 people have been rehabilitated and become beneficiaries.
Of them, more than 28 lakh people have benefited through the Ashrayan Prakalapa while 11,9400 more people have been rehabilitated through different other programmes on the occasion of the ‘Mujib Borsho’.
According to sources, not only the homeless and landless poor, people from the backward societies like different ethnic groups, snake charmers and third gender have also been provided with homes and lands under different other projects.
Experts came up with the opinion that the number of extreme poor and floating people has come down remarkably due to the prime minister's dream project to rehabilitate marginalized people.
The prime aim of the Ashrayan project is to eradicate poverty and improve the livelihood of marginal people apart from ensuring their economic and social security.
It should be mentioned that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday declared 12 more districts and 123 upazilas free from homeless and landless people.
She made the announcement through the distribution of 22,101 more houses with lands in the fourth phase of the Ashrayan Prakalapa-2.
She also called upon the beneficiaries of the houses to ensure cleanliness in and around of the houses and be economical in using electricity and water.
The premier distributed the houses constructed at government expenses as part of her generous move to make sure that none in Bangladesh will remain homeless and landless.
With the new announcement, 21 districts and 334 upazilas have become free from homeless and landless people under the Ashrayan Prakalapa-2.