BADARGANJ, Rangpur, Jan 1, 2023 (BSS) - A 14-member committee has been formed to oversee a structure built in memory of Shaheed 1971 veteran and Intellectual Lt. Col. Md. Abdul Qadir in this northwestern upazila, a press release said here today.

It said the committee would look after all aspects of the structure including its maintenance and development while it was constructed by the martyr's son senior journalist Nadeem Qadir. It was opened in 2022 to the public.

The members present unanimously appointed eminent businessman Md. Mashiur Rahman and senior journalist M. Altaf Hossain Dulal (Prothom Alo) as its President and General Secretary respectively.
 
The two Vice-Presidents are Md. Mazharul Mannan and Md Ayub Khan.

The iconic memorial with a height of 25 feet from the ground was designed by well-known architect DS Fawad Hyder, symbolizing the people of the country who are united in respecting the martyrs of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War with bowed heads. The black floor of the structure symbolises a nation in mourning for the martyrs.

The memorial's shape resemblances a boat, the symbol of traditional Bangladesh as well as Awami League, the political party that led the War against Pakistan.

The meeting, held at the memorial grounds on December 24, 2023, discussed further about the development of the memorial on the bank of the Chikli River on a piece of land owned by the veteran's land and generating of funds for its maintenance, which will mainly come from the green malta (orange) and dragon fruit gardens adjacent to the memorial.

The Committee decided to strongly work to construct the government road crossing the memorial as the process has been delayed by several years, but immediate action was required to enable visitors to come comfortably.
 
Other members of the Committee are Organising Secretary Md. Sifat, Legal Affairs Advocate Shakhawat Ullah Bhuiyan (Bangladesh Supreme Court), Treasurer Sujon Mahmud, Office Secretary Selim Sarker, Publicity and ICT Affairs Secretary M. Mostafizur Rahman, and Members - Anisur Rahman, Managing Editor, Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), Syed Ali, Yasmeen Begum, Hiru Chandra Rai and Shemul Hasan.