Sylhet Bureau Chief Noorul Amin Khan: Sylhet City Corporation (SCC) Administrator Abdul Kayyum Chowdhury has called for the collective cooperation of city residents to build a clean and modern city. He said that the Prime Minister has entrusted him with the responsibility of developing Sylhet as a green and clean city, adding that he also personally dreams of a cleaner urban environment. However, he stressed that this goal cannot be achieved without the combined efforts of all citizens.

He made these remarks while presiding over a discussion meeting on waste management and environmental development of Sylhet city held at the Nagar Bhaban on Sunday (April 12) afternoon.

The SCC administrator said that if every citizen follows two simple practices from their respective positions, building a clean city would become much easier. First, waste should not be dumped indiscriminately but disposed of in designated places; and second, all city taxes must be paid on time. He noted that without proper waste disposal, sanitation workers alone cannot keep the city clean, and without timely tax payment, development activities will also be hindered.

He further said that Sylhet is a well-known region both at home and abroad. Expatriates are accustomed to living in developed and clean cities, and they also expect Sylhet to become a modern urban area. “We may not be able to build a city like London, but through collective efforts we can certainly develop a beautiful and clean city within our own capacity,” he added.

The meeting was conducted by SCC Chief Waste Management Officer Lt. Col. (Retd.) Eklim Abdin. Business leaders, environmental activists, and journalists attended the discussion and provided various suggestions for ensuring a cleaner city. Their recommendations included preventing street vendors from occupying roads and sidewalks, ensuring immediate removal of waste after drain cleaning, improving coordination among agencies before road excavation, raising public awareness, placing dustbins in front of every shop, introducing incentives for proper waste disposal, and imposing fines for littering in unauthorized places.

Speakers at the meeting included SCC Chief Engineer Md. Ali Akbar, Secretary Md. Ashik Noor, and Chief Health Officer Dr. Md. Zahidul Islam.

Special guests included Sylhet Press Club President Muktabis-un Noor, journalist Aftab Chowdhury, Online Press Club President Golzar Ahmed Helal, acting president of Photo Journalists Association Sylhet Division Humayun Kabir Liton, environmental activist Abdul Karim Kim, Sylhet Metropolitan Chamber Director Md. Zahir Hossain, Sylhet Metropolitan Business Coordination Council General Secretary Abdul Hadi Pabel, Shop Owners Association leader Niaz Md. Azizul Karim, and Private Hospital Clinic Association President Nurul Hasan Siddiqui along with General Secretary Dr. Ahmad Nafi, among others.