Save historic Barisal killing field

A mass killing ground of the Liberation War period in Barisal city's Trish Godown area has to be protected by halting an ongoing government project to construct a silo there, demanded a cross-section of government officials and residents at a views exchange meeting yesterday.

To implement the World Bank-financed "Modern Food Storage Facilities Project" at a cost of Tk 178.70 crore, a large pond on a 5.5-acre of land, which is also a part of the killing ground, will be filled up, they said.

They sought relocation of the silo as locals have been demanding construction of a museum at the historic place in memory of the martyrs.

The meeting was orgsanised by the project officials in the city's Bangladesh Development Society auditorium.

Considering the demand, the project officials said they would place the proposal to the authorities concerned to take necessary steps.

Presided over by Amzad Hossain, Barisal regional food controller, the meeting was attended, among others, by Abul Kalam Azad, acting deputy commissioner in Barisal; and Zahangir Alam, coordinator of the project.

Nurul Alam Farid, Enayet Hossain Chowdhury, Kajal Ghosh, freedom fighters; Pulak Chatterjee, and Saifur Rahman Miron, local journalists; and Syed Dulal, a cultural activist, among others, also  spoke.