Staff Correspondent :
Students from various educational institutions in Narayanganj formed a human chain holding photos of their classmates who died or were injured from dengue fever. People from different walks of life also joined the demonstration.
The human chain took place in front of the Narayanganj City Corporation office on Monday.
During the program, the students said, “Those classmates who have died from dengue will never return. We don’t want to lose any more friends to this disease.”
Speakers from different social organizations who stood in solidarity with the students said that one after another, students are dying from dengue, and this ongoing tragedy must be stopped.
They identified Jius Pond as the largest breeding ground for mosquito larvae in Narayanganj city.
Once a clean and beautiful pond where people used to bathe and swim, it has now turned into a filthy swamp due to years of neglect effectively becoming a mosquito factory.
Holding banners and placards, the students chanted slogans such as “Save Jius Pond, Save Lives.”
Speakers alleged that the historic Jius Pond in Ward No. 14 has been taken over by illegal encroachers and turned into a garbage dump now serving as a prime breeding site for Aedes mosquitoes, the carriers of dengue.
Teachers at the event warned that the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has already declared Narayanganj a “Dengue Red Zone.”
If immediate action is not taken, the situation could become even more disastrous.
Local residents reported that over the past few years, at least 25 to 30 residents and students have died from dengue fever. They urged the authorities to clean and restore Jius Pond without delay.
At the end of the program, a delegation representing the local community submitted a memorandum to the City Corporation administrator, demanding the urgent cleaning and renovation of Jius Pond.
