Grown-up in a political family, Dr Selina Hayat Ivy, the first female mayor in Bangladesh, has appeared to be an iconic leader in the politics in Narayanganj and its development as well.
She has won the love and patronage of the people of Narayanganj through her social and humanitarian services which is why Ivy has been the mayor of Narayanganj city for the last 18 years. She is once again contesting the ongoing polls in Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) slated for January 16.
Born on June 6, 1966, Selina Hayat Ivy is a physician by training. She took part in various political and social activities with her father, veteran politician Ali Ahmed Chunka, from her school and college life. In 1993, she was the Health and Environmental Affairs Secretary of Narayanganj city unit of Awami League. Her active political career began in 2003 through her participation in the municipal chairman election.
In 2003, she was elected the chairman of Narayanganj Municipality to be the first female chairman in the port city. Presently she is the vice-president of Narayanganj city Awami League.
She is the founder president of Ali Ahmad Chunka Foundation and Narayanganj Heart Foundation and the chief of the convening committee of Narayanganj district unit of Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad.
Her father, veteran politician Ali Ahmed Chunka, was a chairman of Narayanganj Municipality. She started her education at Deovogh Akhra Primary School. Later, she was admitted to Narayanganj Preparatory School and studied up to the sixth grade there.
Ivy was then admitted to Morgan Girls' High School. She got a junior scholarship in 1979 and passed her secondary school certificate examination in 1982. Then she went to the Odessa National Medical University in 1985 to study medicine with a scholarship from the Russian government and earned a medical degree with merit in 1992.
Later, in 1992-93 she completed her internship at Dhaka Midford Hospital. Ivy worked as an honorary doctor in Midwest Hospital in 1993-94 after her long education, and in Narayanganj 200-bed hospital from 1994 to 1995.
Before Ivy was elected the chairman of Narayanganj Municipality in 2003, the municipal areas were shabby and highly polluted and the inhabitants of Narayanaganj were deprived of civic amenities.
After being elected the chairman of Narayanganj Municipality, Ivy engaged in removing irregularities and anarchy from the municipal areas. She took steps to increase revenue collection of the municipality to pay salaries of employees of the municipality in time and for the development of the municipality.
In 2011, Narayanganj City Corporation was formed with the merging of Shiddhirganj Municipality and Kadam Rasul Municipality. Ivy was elected the Mayor of Narayanganj City Corporation by defeating her rival candidate AKM Shamim Osman by more than one lakh votes on October-30, 2011 and on December 22,2016 she was reelected Mayor of NCC by defeating BNP-backed candidate Shakhawat Hossain with a margin of over one lakh votes.
During her tenure as the chairman and the mayor, Ivy implemented numerous developmental activities including infrastructural development like widening of roads, constructing drains, beautifying the city, setting up of city health centres, amusement parks, digging canals and lake and making playgrounds.
Ivy has also set up a beautiful park named after Sheikh Russel in the middle of the city, another park in Kadamrosul area, just on the east side of Shitalakkhya river, and one more park in Shiddhirganj area.
Moreover, Ivy took measures to end water logging from the city areas, remove traffic congestion, provide health care facilities and ensure all civic amenities for the city dwellers.
