The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Dhaka

Chief of Army Staff General Moeen U Ahmed yesterday stressed need for adopting a more coordinated approach in carrying out relief operation among the cyclone victims and urged all concerned including the aid volunteers to gear up their activities in the remote areas to ensure the succors reaching the affected people.

"We have been observing that individuals and organisations are distributing relief materials only in the areas where they can easily reach with various transports and as a result the people of the remotest areas are getting lesser support," he said while receiving relief materials including cash from different organisations and individuals at Dhaka Cantonment.

He assured the donors that their contribution, both cash and kinds, would go to the real sufferers and all money would be used for their well being. Any portion of the money will not even be spent for transportation of the relief materials, he said.

'We would not spend the donated money only for distributing relief materials rather we like to undertake some construction schemes in the cyclone hit areas for rehabilitation of the affected people', he said. Referring to the government's allocation of Taka 10,000 for every cyclone affected family, General Moeen said the amount is not enough to cope with the situation and urged all to come forward in helping the affected people build their damaged houses in the southwest coastline in the country.

'We will bring the fishermen, who had lost their nets and boats, under cooperative so that they can again go back to the sea for fishing, he said and added that the initiatives have already been started'.

Describing his experience of visiting the affected areas in Sharankhola, the Army Chief said the cyclone had destroyed all mosques and temples in the area, but reconstruction of the religion institutions are yet to be taken place.

He said army officers have taken a decision for donating their one-day salary for construction of damaged mosques in Sharonkhola.

He expressed the hope that every organisation will take similar steps to build schools, colleges or houses in the cyclone affected areas to help victims return to normal life soon.

He said the officers and the troops deployed in cyclone-hit areas would not return until the affected people were rehabilitated properly.

"I would like to say the people of the country that the Bangladesh Army is your army which stands beside you and we are ready to face any kind of difficulties to rehabilitate the cyclone survivors . . . we just need your encouragement," he said.

Forty-five organisations and individuals yesterday donated nearly Taka 3.92 crore in cash and various kinds of relief goods to the Army's relief fund.

The donors comprise Bangladesh Textile Mills Association Taka 50 lakh, Rahim Steel Mills Company Ltd., National Bank, Social Investment Bank and IFIC Bank Taka 25 lakh each, Orient Overseas Container Line Taka 20.7 lakh, TATA Group and Navana Group Taka 20 lakh each, NTV Taka 7.2 lakh, Padma Islami Life Insurance, Pragati Insurance, TK Group of Industries Chittagong, EBA Group, Rosh Bangladesh, NCC Bank and Summit Group Taka 10 lakh each, Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (BEPZA) Taka 9.62 lakh, Bangladesh Chemical and Perfumery Merchant Association, Pink City Gulshan, Apex Spinning and Knitting Mills ltd., Apex Food Ltd. and KDS Garments Chittagong Taka 5 lakh each, Islampur Cloth Merchant Association Group-1 Taka 7 lakh and 3000 pieces of saree and group-2 Taka 8 Lakh, Mercantile Bank Taka 6 lakh, Korean Minting and Printing and Bangladeshi Expatriate in Qatar Abu Taleb 10,000 US dollar each, Bangladesh Paints, Dyes and Chemicals Merchant Association Taka 4 lakh each, Bangladesh Polymer Importer Association and Bangladesh Paper Importer Association Taka 3 lakh each, Dhaka Cantonment Ladies Club Taka 2.8 lakh, the Optimist 3,000 US dollar, Baridhara Society Taka 2.5 lakh and Kurmitola Golf Club Taka 3.6 lakh.

Besides, Siemens Bangladesh donated 20 water purification units, those have already been sent to the affected areas, while Arla Foods Denmark gave 2000 pieces of blanket and milk products.

The Prime Bank handed over 50 laptop computers to the Army Chief for preparing voter and national identity card on the occasion.

After receiving the donations, General Moeen U Ahmed gave Taka 36,000 from the Army Relief Fund to a cyclone affected Dhaka university student M Nurul Islam for his one-year education expense.

The Army Chief donated the money in response to a request from Nurul's father M Yusuf Ali of Southkhali village in Sharankhola upazila of Bagherhat district. He made the request during the Army Chief's visit to the area.