Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said the size of budget for 2019-20 fiscal will be over Tk 5 trillion.
“We’ve placed Tk 4.64 trillion budget in the current fiscal year … we’ll place the new budget on Jun 13 in parliament and its size will be over Tk 5 trillion,” ,” she saod at an iftar for the leaders of different political parties at her official Ganabhaban residence on Saturday (May 25).
The prime minister mentioned that when the Awami League formed government in 1996, the size of the budget was very small.
“When we first formed the government, the size of the development budget was only Tk 180 billion or 190 billion. But we’ve framed Tk 2 trillion crore development budget in the next fiscal,” she said.
Highlighting her government’s various steps for development of the country, Sheikh Hasina said uplift is being reached up to the grassroots level.
“We’re making all arrangements so that every person can lead a beautiful life with food, clothes, housing, education and medicare,” BSS quoted Hasina as saying.
The prime minister said the government wants that everybody will live with his/her basic rights and not a single person to remain homeless and without medicare and will be deprived of the light of education.
Expressing gratitude to the people for reelecting her government to serve them again, Sheikh Hasina one again said the power to her is not a thing to enjoy, rather it is an opportunity to serve the people.
“Following this ideology, I’ve been working for the development of the country and its results are being reached to the people,” the premier said.
She continued: “Our aim is to reach the fruits of independence to every house and every person gets a beautiful life.”
Hasina said 93 percent people are now getting electricity and their living standard is being improved.
“We’ve brought down the poverty rate to 21 percent from 41 percent and cut the extreme poverty rate to 11 percent … there will not be any extreme poor in Bangladesh in future Insha Allah,” she said.
The prime minister sought doa and cooperation of all to build a developed and prosperous Bangladesh free from terrorism, militancy, drugs and corruption.
“It’s my only expectations that you’ll pray for the country and people and so that we can establish a developed and prosperous Bangladesh free from terrorism, militancy, drugs and graft,” she said.
At the outset of her speech, the prime minister extended her Ramadan greetings to all and paid tributes to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
“Bangabandhu had presented an independent state named Bangladesh to us and he wanted to build a hunger and poverty-free Sonar Bangla,” she said.
The prime minister said the Father of the Nation rebuilt the war-ravaged country within three and half years of its independence.
“Bangabandhu framed the maritime boundary law and set up earth satellite station … he also passed the historic land boundary law by signing agreement on which basis we exchanged enclaves with India,” she said.
Hasina said all political parties in India unanimously passed the Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh. “We’ve exchanged enclaves peacefully which I think created a history in the world,” Sheikh Hasina said.
The premier said following the footsteps of the Father of the Nation, her government is working relentlessly for the socioeconomic development of the people. “Bangladesh is now a role model of development in the world,” she said.
Hasina reiterated her determination to build Bangladesh as a middle income country by 2021 and developed and prosperous one by 2041.
“We’ll also celebrate Mujib Barsho in 2020-2021, golden jubilee of independence in 2021 and centenary of independence in 2071 … we also adopted the Delta Plan-2100 so that the next generations get a developed and prosperous country and the uplift is sustainable,” she said.
Extending her Eid greetings to all in advance, the prime minister regretted that she will not stay in the country during the festival as she has some overseas tours at that time.
“I’m very sorry that I cannot stay in the Eid as I have a number of visits abroad … I’m going to Japan first, then I will visit to Saudi Arabia to attend the OIC Summit and from there I will go to Finland,” she said.
Hasina said she will go to Finland to see the newly-born granddaughter of her sister Sheikh Rehana “As I cannot stay in the Eid, I extend my heartiest Eid greetings to the countrymen and expatriate Bangladeshis in advance from this iftar mahfil,” she said.
Expressing hope that this Eid will be celebrated peacefully, the prime minister said the law enforcement agencies and intelligence agencies are working excellently to maintain law and order in the country.
“They’re containing terrorism and militancy in one hand, while they’re making every festival festive in other hand by sacrificing their everything,” she said extending her sincere thanks to the law enforcement agencies including Police and RAB.