31-year road safety fight enters new chapter
Veteran actor and road safety campaigner Ilias Kanchan has urged people to keep fighting for safer roads, saying the movement has grown beyond any individual and now belongs to the people of Bangladesh.
He made the appeal while addressing a grand rally organised by Nirapad Sarak Chai (We Demand Safe Roads) at the National Theatre Hall in Dhaka on Friday.
Reflecting on the origins of the campaign, Kanchan said he transformed the grief of losing his wife into a lifelong movement for road safety.
“Thirty-one years ago, I turned the deep grief and pain of my personal loss into the strength of the safe roads movement,” he said.
“Over this long journey, the movement has grown beyond any individual or organisation. It has become a movement of people across the country.”
The actor launched Nirapad Sarak Chai after his wife, Jahanara Kanchan, was killed in a road accident on October 22, 1993. The date is now observed as National Road Safety Day in Bangladesh.
Speaking about his health, the organisation’s chairman expressed hope of returning to the campaign.
“I pray that Allah grants me good health and the strength to join the movement alongside all of you once again. I wish safety, peace and prosperity for the people of this country,” he said.
He also appealed to the government, administration, transport owners and workers, as well as citizens, to strengthen their participation in the movement.
“I also urge the government, the administration, transport owners and workers, as well as every conscious citizen, to become part of this movement,” he said.
Addressing supporters, Kanchan stressed that road safety is a shared responsibility.
“We are not opponents of each other. We are all partners in the effort to save human lives,” he said.
“I leave my dream with you. Even if I am no longer here, you must continue to play your part in making safe roads a reality.”
Speaking at the rally, Cultural Affairs Minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury described the campaign as a movement for people’s rights rather than an individual cause.
“This is not anyone’s personal demand or movement; it is a movement for people’s rights. As the current government, however, our goal is to build a state where people will not have to take to the streets to demand their fundamental rights,” he said.
He said the government aims to build a united and inclusive Bangladesh where people of all races, religions and ethnicities enjoy equal rights.
Addressing activists of Nirapad Sarak Chai, the minister praised their efforts to protect lives, calling the campaign “an extremely important social movement”.
“Our government has begun its work from the most marginalised villages across the country. Plans are being made in different sectors, and we hope the state itself will ensure all the constitutional rights of its citizens,” he added.
State Minister for Road Transport and Communications Habibur Rashid Habib was among those present at the programme, which highlighted the continuing need for collective efforts to improve road safety across Bangladesh.
