This letter is in reference to an article titled 'Rajuk to build another satellite town at Basila' that was published in the Financial Express on October 2, 2018. It sounds great to know that the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) is planning to build another modern satellite town at Keraniganj that will house thousands of families. Rajuk has another under-construction housing project named Jhilmil in Keraniganj.
The article mentioned that Rajuk is set to acquire 1,084 acres of land beginning from opposite the Basila Bridge on the Buriganga for the township. To be worth around Tk 66.70 billion, the township project, if approved by the Planning Commission, will have around 200 buildings that can house around 23,000 families.
The project will be Rajuk's fourth such project after Uttara, Jhilmil and Purbachal.
Such townships are necessary to ease the pressure on Dhaka. The population density in Dhaka is realised when one goes out on the road to travel to their office, home or any other destination. Traffic congestion is a common phenomenon in all parts of the city. As most of the private and public offices along with other facilities are based in Dhaka, more and more people are coming to the city to work and live here.
There is also pressure on public utilities like gas, electricity, water and other resources.
Many countries of the world including Malaysia, Philippines, USA, Canada, India and others have seen great results after constructing townships on the outskirts of their major cities.
The only active Rajuk-implemented township that Dhaka has right now is Uttara. The residential area has been a huge help for the city ever since its implementation around the nineties.
Purbachal, Jhilmil and soon Basila can also be a help to Dhaka. But the government departments need to develop the land and distribute plots efficiently. Unnecessary delays can increase the cost of the projects and may not yield much benefit for the city.
Also, efficient commuting services need to be ensured along with ancillary facilities required in such communities in order to encourage Dhaka's residents to move to these townships.
Akibul Javed
Indira Road, Dhaka.
