Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said she wants to make sure that everyone in Bangladesh gets their own home, land and address as her government continues working for inclusive development. “My aim is to make sure that not a single person remains homeless in Bangladesh,” she told the Bangla service of Voice of America in an interview aired on Tuesday, sharing how the idea of Ashrayan project came to her — giving equal ownership rights to the husband and the wife of a landless family. Read: Hasina and Friends: Interactive gaming platform to educate children The Ashrayan project — home for the homeless — is seen as a “Sheikh Hasina Model” for inclusive development. Responding to a question, PM Hasina said she has made good on her commitment and 10 lakh families have received homes. “If we count, around 35 lakh people got permanent shelters.” She said they are not just giving homes to the homeless, people are also provided with cash support with necessary training to get involved in income generating work and opportunities to sell their products in the market.  The prime minister remembered her countrywide visits in 1981 when she helped people get homes in some places. But she saw that those homes were sold by them after a few days. Then she thought of some ways so that the helpless people do not need to sell off their homes. She also shared her experience of visiting St. Martin's Island after a cyclone in 1997 where she found 70 families without homes. Read:PM in Washington: Media in Bangladesh free to criticize govt Awami League leaders came forward with their land when she wanted to build homes for them with the support of Bangladesh Navy. “I designed the houses. That’s how it began.” The prime minister said she made sure that ownership of the home goes to both the husband and the wife. If any problem arises between them, or if the husband abandons the wife, the ownership will go to her, she said.

The Bangladesh Foreign Service Association (BFSA) has donated Tk  32.50 lakh to build homes for the homeless under the Ashrayan project of the government that is being run out of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). BFSA president Sabbir Ahmed Chowdhury handed over the cheque to senior secretary of PMO  MD Tofazzel Hossain Miah on Thursday. The project director of Ashrayan-2, BFSA general secretary and treasurer were present during the occasion. Earlier, BFSA had donated the funds to build 10 houses for landless people under the same project. Also read: Grade-3 student Jannat now dreams to be a doctor getting Ashrayan house  

Erosion has taken a serious turn in Chilmari upazila of Kurigram district and Sundarganj upazila of Gaibandha district, rendering many people living along the banks of Teesta River homeless in the past one week. Hundreds of houses have been washed away by the recent erosion while a vast track of crop lands and trees were devoured by the Teesta River. Three educational institutions of the two upazilas are at risk of erosion. During a recent visit to Patrakhata union in Chilmari upazila and Karent Bazar of Haripur union in Sundarganj upazila of Gaibandha district, this correspondent found that several hundred people have been living under the open sky as their homesteads were gorged into the river water. Local people alleged that they lost everything due to the negligence on the part of the authorities concerned of the Water Development Board and contractor firm as they failed to dump GO bags along the bank of the river in time. Maulana Abdul Aziz Akanda, Madrasha super of Patrakhata Riajul Jannah Dakhil Madrasha in Chilmari upazila, said erosion has taken a serious turn at the bordering areas of the two districts for the last several months but the authorities concerned did not take any steps to prevent it. As a result, many families were left homeless. Read: Jamuna gulps 400 houses in Sirajganj If the government would not take any effective initiative immediately, then the Mandalerhat Government Primary School, Madaripara Mondolerhat high School and Patrakhata Riajul Jannah Dakhil Madrasha will be washed away anytime, he said. Bahar Uddin, a resident of the area said “The authorities concerned kept ready a hundred sacks of sand but why are they waiting? Have no idea. Had they dumped sacks in time then many houses could be saved.” Abdullah Al Mamun, executive engineer of Kurigram Water Development Board, said 70,000 geobags have been allocated and they will soon start to dump the bags after counting.

Over 30 lakh people have been rendered homeless and as many as 40,000 houses destroyed in the recent floods in Sylhet, officials said on Thursday. All the 13 upazilas of the district, including five municipalities, have been affected. Read: Another spell of flood looms over northeastern region According to the local administration, over 2.5 lakh people are living in over 610 shelter homes across the district.

Just a couple of hours of downpour is enough to make the lives of those living along the Bhabdah beel in Jashore's Monirampur upazila miserable. But this year, the monsoon rains have been particularly unkind to the residents of the 80-plus villages along the beel. The root of the problem is a poor drainage network. With clogged drains and the onrush of hill water leading to massive waterlogging in these villages, hundreds of families have been rendered homeless. Read: How Jashore’s fisheries output grew in the midst of a pandemic Some of these families are now living in makeshift huts along the busy Manirampur-Nawapara road waiting for the floodwaters to recede. UNB recently visited three such villages -- Sujatpur, Bajekultia, Hatgacha -- as well as the Manirampur-Nawapara road to witness the plight of these displaced families. In the villages, we found affected residents wading through the squalid waters to reach their homes -- posing high public health risk to the entire region.

Some 53,500 more homeless and landless families are going to get semi-pucca houses in June under the Ashrayan-2 project. Earlier in January, some 70,000 homeless and landless families received tin-shed homes along with two decimals of land  under the special project run out of the Prime Minister's Office in the Mujib Year. Now the second phase of distribution of the semi-pucca houses will start early June, according to the plan taken in a meeting held with PM’s Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus in the chair Monday. Also read: Hasina inaugurates home distribution under Ashrayan-2 Project The meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s Office to review the progress over the ongoing construction of houses under the Ashrayan-2 project.   PMO Secretary Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah also spoke at the meeting, while Project Director of Ashrayan-2 Md Mahbub Hossain made a power-point presentation. All divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners, upazila nirbahi officers (UNO) were virtually connected with the meeting. In the meeting, the field-level administration was directed to complete the construction of houses within the stipulated time maintaining the quality in works without any deviation. Alongside expediting the present construction works, the field officials were also asked to take preparations to construct another 125,000 houses for homeless people in the next year. The Principal Secretary directed the field officials not to compromise the quality of the houses. “If we find any deviation in it, we’ll show zero tolerance.  Any deviation will in no way be tolerated. Don’t take it lightly. We’ll not let anyone tarnish the image of the project or the initiative,” he said. Dr Kaikaus also said the noble deed like construction for homeless people is an excellent opportunity for the officers to show their efficiency in their career. He said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s programme to alleviate poverty by providing homeless with houses is a rare model in the world. The Principal Secretary asked to prepare a database of beneficiaries of the Ashrayan project. Speaking at the meeting, the PMO Secretary asked the field officials to send the proposal to purchase lands for construction of the 125,000 houses in the next phase to the project director within the 15 days. Action will have to be taken immediately against anomalies, if any, Tofazzel Hossain added. In the second phase, the total number of allotted houses is 53,434. Of them, 7,280 houses in Dhaka division, while 2,512 in Mymensingh, 10,562 in Chattogram, 12,391 in Rangpur, 7,172 in Rajshahi, 3,911 in Khulna, 7,627 in Barishal and 1979 in Sylhet division.

For Shahadat and his wife Nargis Begum, a public toilet in the Tinpatti area of Boalmari Bazar has long been home.

Dhaka, Mar 26 (UNB) - The calamity known as the Coronavirus or COVID-19 has resulted in an unprecedented shutdown of schools, markets and the normal life in general across the planet. It  has already brought  miseries to the people of Bangladesh - where concern keeps growing over whether an epidemic can be kept at bay.