Dhaka: The Change Makers—one of the many volunteers’ teams from the signature event of PDF-Summer Challenge 2015 organised a seminar titled Infrastructural Facilities for Physically-challenged on 16 June at Civil Engineering seminar room in BUET.

The volunteers were students from BUET. BUET Architecture Department head Farida Nilufar was the chief guest at the seminar. Besides, founder and president of Physically-Challenged Development Foundation (PDF) Mizanur Rahman Kiron, BUET Mechanical Engineering department assistant professor Ashiqur Rahman, and Urban and Regional Planning (URP) department assistant professor Anindya Kishore Debnath were spoke at the seminar.

The Change Makers participated in the 35 day-long event with their project ‘Improvement of Infrastructural Facilities for Physically-Challenged’. The seminar was considered as an effective approach towards their work, a step in raising awareness among the team members.

The seminar was inaugurated by the team leader Abu Jar Mohammad Minhuz, a student of Civil Engineering department. The project was presented by the team’s treasurer Mohaiminul Haque Shimul. 

Farida Nilufar said, ‘When we were undergraduate students we weren’t aware of the ordeals faced by physically challenged people. This initiative taken by Change Makers as well as PDF is an initiative to make a friendly atmosphere for them.’

‘So, let’s break down all barriers towards ensuring this atmosphere, and most importantly transforming BUET Campus friendly to physically-challenged peers and students.’   

Mizanur Rahman Kiron said, ‘Having a friendly atmosphere for physically-challenged people is a gigantic task; even though it might take a long time, someday the hummingbirds of today will bring a great change in our society tomorrow. It is a matter of holding on to your work and intentions.’ 

Anindya Kishore Debnath presented examples of differently abled people who became successful in their lives and quoted Juan Jose Mendez: ‘Don’t tell me you can’t.’ 

Ashiqur Rahman said, ‘I shall always be supportive towards the people who want a friendly environment for the physically-challenged.’

A designing idea contest, ’Design Your Own Campus: Friendly to Physically-challenged’, was announced by the Change Makers in the seminar. 

The team coordinator Manish Agrawal said, ‘The participants of the seminar  proved that our students are now aware of the fact and the designing competition further reflect that they’ve started thinking about a significant change.’