Editorial
Concerns for Chittagonians
The focus on road conditions
We have been writing profusely on civic problems plaguing the capital city. We now take the opportunity to write on the pitiable road conditions of Chittagong, the port city and defacto commercial capital of Bangladesh. Chittagong, which is picturesque with its hill-side and seaboard beauty, is unfortunately contrasted by horrific conditions of its roads. This is a shame for a city inhabited by wealthy people and with a full-fledged mayoral office.
For all we know, Chittagong has been the victim of indiscriminate hill cutting and mudslides. Of late, road conditions have worsened due to water logging caused by incessant downpour. The streets are potholed; have craters giving rough rides to commuters. Long tail backs and intolerable waste of time are daily occurrences. People's woe has been only compounded by the surge of the Eid crowd.
What are the city fathers doing?
The current state of affairs is the outcome of neglect and indifference on the part of the concerned authorities to their given charter of duties. It is the Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) which is mainly responsible to oversee the development and maintenance of roads and other civic amenities. Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) is involved in constructing and maintaining roads in certain parts of the city. The present state of affairs is a clear evidence of their failure, as far as road communication is concerned.
It is alleged that a Taka 35 crore project undertaken by the CCC to repair 50 kilometers of roads this year ran into trouble as the allocation was misused by the engineers and contractors of the CCC.
We don't know how much hope can be pinned on the mayor's assurances that most roads will be fit before ensuing Eid. We ask, what is his recipe against corruption? For that can spoil his chances of redeeming himself.
We would like to rest in the belief that the Chittagong Mayor would wake up to the problem of civic hardship and try his utmost to gift his constituency with improved road communication.
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