& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Training vital for UP chairmen, members to know roles, duties

Speakers say at seminar

Staff Correspondent
To strengthen the local government, training is essential for union parishad (UP) chairmen and members, especially women, to know about their roles, duties and responsibilities as most of them are in dark about the duties and rights, speakers at a seminar said yesterday.
Saying that the local government can play an important role in developing society, they stressed the need for holding workshops, seminars and discussions at grassroots level to create awareness of the roles and responsibilities of the local representatives which will help ensure transparency and accountability.
Mass-line Media Centre (MMC) in association with Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) organised the seminar titled 'Activities of union parishad: Roles of women members to ensure transparency and accountability' atIDB Bhabaninthecity.
Around 50 UP chairmen and members of different areas of the country took part in the programme. Of them, some narrated a number of problems they are facing in their respective areas.
Taking part in the seminar, Kazi Shahinur Akhter, UP member of Pangasia union under Dumki upazila in Patuakhali alleged that they have no official work without signing some files.
"Though we are elected members, we are not allowed to be involved in any development or service delivery programmes; even we are not allowed to hold
any position in the committee like president and secretary as we are women,” she added.
Shahinur said, “When we raise our voice, the concerned chairman said you are women, there is no need to get yourself involved in such activities."
Defying the allegation, Abdur Razzak, chairman of Magar union of Nalchhity upazila in Jhalakathi, said in terms of decision-making, female members always depend on their husbands and often their husbands interfere in different activities of the union parishad.
"There is a need to maintain minimum standard level of education of the union parishad chairmen and members so that they can understand their duties and responsibilities,” he added.
Speaking as the chief guest, Dr Badiul Alam Majumder, country director of Hunger Project, urged the chairmen and members to read those chapters in the constitution that narrated the roles and responsibilities of local government.
He emphasised the importance of revising the local government law in order to strengthen it as well as to lessen discrimination between city corporation and local government.
Presenting a keynote, Mobarak Hossain, project coordinator of MMC, made some recommendations to increase the active participation of female members in the UP, including forming a policy, increasing allowances, making them president of different subcommittees, giving opportunity to implement their pledges
in the manifesto, involving them budget making and distribution and media coverage depicting their different roles.
MMC Executive Director Kamrul Hassan Manju presided over the seminar which was also addressed by Ranjan Karmaker, executive director of Steps Towards Development, and Tahera lebin. senior development adviser of Cl DA.