MAILBOX

The Stories of Woes and Wounds

Every year during the rainy season, landslides kill thousands of people in the hilly areas of our country. This year, added to the landslides, the flash floods from the hills across the border made thousands of people in Chittagong, Cox's Bazaar and Feni homeless. Many of them lost their lives. In the last week's spotlight (published on August 7, 2015), the Star Weekend depicted the tragedy very well and wrote about the government's initiatives to prevent these fatal disasters. However, during the recent calamity, we have seen brutal indifference from the government quarters. Nobody came to rescue the affected people; no relief effort was taken. I hope this timely article of The Star Weekend will influence the government to take relief measures for the affected people. 

Sarah Farhana
Nikunjo, Dhaka

Men who used to hunt turtles now releasing them back to the wild. Photo Courtesy: Eco Guardian Program

In most districts of Bangladesh, reptiles are seen as evil and unholy creatures and turtles are seen as a poor man's food. People here are not at all aware of the ecological importance of these creatures. I would like to thank Shahriar Caesaer Rahman, whose selfless efforts have changed the mindset of thousands of people who are now trying to preserve reptiles instead of slaughtering them. The writer who described the initiative in her article has also done a great job in raising this awareness.

Shahriar Khan
Dhanmondi, Dhaka

Vehicles on the Footpath

Despite judicial prohibition, motor bikes and bi-cycles have been moving on the footpaths showing no heed to the laws. Traffic police are also indifferent about the law-breakers. It seems like nobody cares about laws and safety on the roads. The way the bikers use the footpaths, full of pedestrians, can cause serious accidents any day. If the law enforcers can't stop these reckless drivers, citizens should come forward to stop them.

Md Zonaed Emran
Banasree, Dhaka   

***The opinions expressed in these letters do not necessarily represent the views of the Star Weekend.