Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday called upon all the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) to ensure country's overall development and hassle-free services to people.
The Prime Minister issued 24 directives to the DCs while inaugurating the three-day- long annual DCs conference. The Prime Minister opened the conference as the chief guest joining virtually from her official Ganabhaban residence.
"The country will advance continuously. I call upon you to focus on some issues out of the huge tasks you are doing," she said.
The Prime Minister asked the DCs to discharge their duties with the mindset of serving people following the path of truth and justice for ensuring welfare of the common man.
She also asked the government officials to make sure that the mass people ae not harassed in getting public services.
“Perform your lawful responsibilities remaining above all kinds of fears and greed to ensure public welfare,” she said while issuing the directives to the DCs.
The conference began at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital city of Dhaka with the presence of 15 ministers and secretaries in the inaugural ceremony.
The Prime minister thanked the Cabinet Division for arranging the DCs conference amid the Covid-19 pandemic as the conference was not held in the last two years due to the lethal virus situation.
Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam and PM's Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus addressed the conference.
Divisional Commissioner of Khulna Ismail Hossain, Deputy Commissioners of Chandpur and Rangpur Anjana khan Majlish and Asif Ahsan also spoke on the occasion, on behalf of the divisional commissioners and DCs, respectively.
The directives of the Prime Minister to the DCs include ensuring of food security and keeping market price stable, ensuring required services of the government offices for the people within the stipulated time are the duties of the government employees.
She asked the DCs to intensify efforts to achieve the targets under localising the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), to ensure access of homeless to the houses, landless to khas lands alongside taking programmes under the social safety net for the real distressed, insolvent and underprivileged people.
The Prime Minister asked the DCs to take initiatives to improve teaching style at the educational institutions alongside adopting measures to continue the lessons following alternative ways using online or digital medium and pay more attention to the educational institutes comparatively situated at the remotest areas.
DCs have been asked to supervise regularly the community clinics and union health and family welfare centres to ensure their operations and make people aware about the health through various programmes.
She asked the DCs to ensure practice of creativity, cultural activities and sports facilities in every area aimed at flourishing the physical and mental growth of children and teenagers and preserve parks and playgrounds at each upazilas and districts alongside building fresh parks and playgrounds to ensure healthy life of the citizens.
DC’s are asked to build skilled manpower with knowledge of modern technology keeping pace with the changed world to reap benefit of the fourth industrial revolution and to work to ensure safe use of information technology and internet for the general people alongside taking initiatives to prevent rumour using the social networking sites.
The PM asked the DCs to take a tougher stance against religious fanaticism and militancy to maintain religious harmony and non-communal heritage.
She asked the DCs to continue the "zero tolerance" policy against drugs to create a drug-free society and to take appropriate legal measures to stop violence, repression and discriminatory behaviour against women and children. Mobile courts must have to be in place to stop child marriage, eve-teasing, food adulteration and production of fake products.
DCs were asked to strengthen the market monitoring to ensure smooth supply of goods in markets, prevent artificial crisis (of products) and keep prices normal.
The PM asked the DCs to take stringent actions to protect government lands, rivers, forest lands, hills and natural water bodies. She asked them to give emphasis on vertical extension in constructing new government buildings to save land alongside a planned urbanization and afforestation.
Besides, DCs are asked to take special measures to flourish and preserve the tourism industry taking measures to preserve heritage and culture of each district and conducting publicity and marketing of the important products of the districts. PM asked the DCs to take initiatives to coordinate works of the government offices in all districts to upgrade Bangladesh to the status of the developed countries by 2041, to take and implement projects in coordination with the public representatives that include local lawmakers, elected persons, District Council, Upazila and Union Parishads. Public welfare and service- oriented projects will have to be taken considering the promises of the public representatives to the people which will quicken the overall development. She asked them to be alert so that no development projects are taken indiscriminately damaging the environment and ecological balance.
Other directives include work to ensure all the facilities such as accommodation for the underprivileged people including gypsies, farmers, transgender, harijan and cleaners to ensure their development.
The Prime Minister asked the DCs to ensure dignified life of the families of the freedom fighters after finding out those families who were victims of genocide during the Liberation War and are now leading miserable lives.
She asked them to preserve the killing grounds and war fields across the country to let people know the history of the Liberation War.
DCs were also asked to implement government directives regarding Coronavirus and ensure implementation and continuation of development and service- oriented programmes taken for the birth centenary of the father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Mujib Borsho.
