DHAKA: North Bengal’s local representatives Wednesday lamented that the region kept lagging behind in development socially, economically and educationally being neglected since Bangladesh’s independence like the then East Pakistan.

The disappointments were vented at a seminar on ‘Northern Region’s Development and Budget Assumptions’ organized by North Bengal Development Forum (NBDF) at CIRDAP auditorium in the city.  Ruling Awami League MP Shahriar Alam, Convener of the NBDF, presented a keynote paper.

The northerners claimed that the region’s farmers produce 60 percent paddy of the country but thy never get due price of their labor.

“There is a possibility of revolt where a rage has been crystallizing for many years. To avert any such unwarranted incident, the government high-ups should take instant steps,” some parliament members from the north deplored in the seminar.

Planning Minister AK Khondkar, while speaking as a chief guest, said, “Barind’s groundwater has so dried up that agricultural cultivation is likely to be impossible in the region. So river dredging is very important now, and the government has already taken decision for dredging the rivers.”

Development of ICT sector is very much important in the Barind region to cope with the changing world and exporting manpower from the region is essential to earn foreign currency to change the fate of the upcountry region’s people, he added.

The Minister also said, “If we could improve the ICT sector across the country, it would be possible to prevent tender manipulation and corruption and good governance would be established.”

Adviser to the Prime Minister HT Imam advised the organizers as a special guest to form a taskforce and submit a recommendation to the PM with priorities about the problems of North Bengal. “Don’t think any problem as regional but national,” he said.

State Minister for Land Mostafizur Rahman and Rajshahi City Mayor Khairuzzaman Liton, Fazle Hossain Badsha MP, Omar Faruque MP, Mokbul Hossain MP, Ziaur Rahman MP, Abdul Wadud MP, Esrafil Alam MP, Jahrul Islam MP, former Bangladesh cricket captain Khaled Masud Pilot were among others who also spoke at the seminar.

BDST: 1620, HRS, May 19, 2010
RT/MMA/MUA