Housing issues have long been a problem for many in our society. To that end, the authorities so far have been doing a commendable job with the Ashrayan project, and deserve plaudits. In the third phase of the project, some 825 landless and homeless families in Mymensingh will get new houses. Of the total, construction work for 553 houses have already been completed, and the rest of the houses are scheduled to be handed over to beneficiary families by December of this year.
Bangladesh has done a lot of work in terms of GDP growth, but the benefit of this growth is not equally divided. A large number of people still live from hand to mouth, and even a larger number of these people do not have homes. There are as many as five million people that are homeless in Bangladesh, and this obviously leads to a lot of physical and mental complications. This also creates a situation where people are forced to leave the places they were born in and come to live in slums. All in all, the homelessness issue in Bangladesh is dire.
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Fortunately, the Ashrayan project has been able to provide numerous families with well built, safe, and proper houses. This is especially remarkable given the fact that this is something that a lot of developed countries have failed to do as well. The authorities need to keep this progress and regulate the momentum where necessary. As with any large-scale project in Bangladesh, being vigilant so that no corruption can seep in is extremely important.
Food and housing are fundamental rights that every citizen in every country is entitled to. There is no reason for Bangladesh to not be able to provide them for all its citizens.
