Desk Report : The government has decided to turn Bangabandhu Poverty Alleviation Training Complex into an autonomous body and formulating a policy to introduce National Rural Development Award.

The decisions were taken today at the maiden meeting of National Rural Development Council at Prime Minister’s Office with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.

After a detailed discussion on several agendas, the meeting decided to enact a new legislation for giving autonomy to Bangabandhu Poverty Alleviation Training Complex whose activities were remained suspended during the tenure of past BNP-Jamaat government.

Briefing newsmen after the meeting, PM’s Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad told newsmen that the decisions were taken to speed up the government’s rural development efforts for overall and sustainable national development.

Addressing the meeting, the Prime Minister reiterated her government’s firm conviction to ensure rural development for overall uplift of the country.

“We want to ensure rural development for sustainable national development and to this end we are implementing various programmes especially in rural areas,” she added.

Sheikh Hasina said her government has been working relentlessly to present a better life to the people through attaining socio-economic development of the country.

The Prime Minister said her government has been implementing various development programmes in the rural areas that included “One Farm, One Homestead”, “Ashrayan Project” and “Palli Abason Project” as there is no alternative to economic emancipation of people for rural development.

She said Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman used to dream of a peaceful, poverty and hunger free “Sonar Bangla” (Golden Bengal) through ensuring development in the rural areas.

“We, following the path of Bangabandhu, have been implementing various programmes in the rural areas to fulfill the dream of Father of the Nation to build a ‘Sonar Bangla’ to ensure a poverty and hunger free improved life of the people,” she said

In this context, she reiterated her government’s plan to implement a master plan in all the upazilas to ensure their sustainable development in a planned way. She underlined the need for implementing those plan with the coordination among all relevant organisations.

Finance Minister A M A Muhith, Planning Minister Air Vice-
Marshal (Rtd) A K Khandakar, Agriculture Minister Begum Matia Chowdhury, LGRD and Cooperatives Ministers Syed Ashraful Islam, Home Minister Adv. Sahara Khatun, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid, Information Minister Abul Kalam Azad, Social Welfare Minister Enamul Haque Mostafa Shahid, Land Minister Rezaul Karim Hira and Health Minister Prof. Dr A F M Ruhal Haque, among others, attended the meeting.

Press Secretary to the Prime Minister and secretaries concerned were present.