Yes, that is the ultimate target of all the city dwellers. At present city dwellers are crawling over a host of severe problems. Starting from unplanned urbanization, traffic Jam, pollution, problem of civic facilities like lack of children's play ground, parking facilities water-logging on the city streets during rainy season, problem of inadequate utility services water sanitation and so on. But one problem probably irritates each and every city dweller equally that is cleanliness of the city. The problem becomes unbearable during rainy season. Huge municipal waste washed away by rain water eventually starts floating around a wide area threatening the residents of water-borne diseases and leaving the areas not worthy of living. But if we look back into three to four decades back, we can view a different look of our city. At that time city was clean and green with large open places, lakes, ponds and water bodies and greeneries in every part of the city.
But nowadays it is hard to believe that the view of city was like this. Anyway this is inevitable as economic growth accelerates with the pace of time. Huge numbers of people are coming to the cities in search of jobs and a better life. In addition to that economic activities also have increased many folds and obvious outcome of that is rapid urbanization. And if the urbanization takes place in an unplanned way, then problems are going to be like this. The city dwellers were absolutely frustrated regarding the solution to these problems and started thinking the issue as their misfortune or as a part of life. Suddenly the city dwellers see a light at the end of the tunnel. After a long time a mayoral election was declared and a good number of candidates offering their candidature to serve the city dwellers in a better way. They declared many actions and proposals to make the city a better place to live in. Interestingly they offered to solve too many problems which are even not under their control or discretion. But they didn't forget to address one issue in their election manifesto that is to make Dhaka green and clean. And one of the prime duties of Municipal Corporation is to keep the city clean and beautiful. But naturally the question arises as to how to solve a tremendous problem like this. Initially two problems are there -- one is shortage of manpower and another is fund problem. Through utilising power someone can arrange extra fund for making the city green and clean but using taxpayers' money for turning the city beautiful raises a question mark of justification for spending the amount of money meant for other basic necessities.
The Mayor elected from North has declared once again after election that he is thinking about rooftop gardening to turn the city green. He has not specifically declared any programme for making the city clean, but so far as we know it is also one of his commitments to the city dwellers. No matter what steps he takes it will require fund. So let us discuss the commercialization of these two programmes, where waste would be the raw material for producing biogas and compost fertilizer. Some examples are still there, how a waste or garbage could become a valuable product if we know the commercial value and utility of the garbage. Garments waste locally known as jhoot is one of the examples of that. Initially the waste or jhoot of garments was dumped in dustbins or in most cases on waysides creating problem of drainage and especially in the rainy season the garments cutting carried away by rain water to wider area and making the city streets dirtier. But nowadays it is hard to find garments waste in any of the municipal dustbins or dumping grounds because these waste is being used as packing materials. Garments manufacturers are earning money through sale of garments waste previously which was a problem for them to dispose off. Another waste product is glass bottles and old newspapers and magazines, both the items have got some resale value because these are some how being reused for different purposes. These waste products are not found in any dustbins or dumping stations. So if sewerage, kitchen waste and other garbage's are turned to raw materials of valuable bio gas and liquid fuel than the problem of managing garbage in the municipal areas could be turned to commercially viable projects. To some extent further study is needed to assess the feasibility of the project but it is quite sure that there is huge demand for compost fertilizer and bio gas or liquid fuels so even if the projects can reach break even point than municipal corporation can solve the problem of garbage and create employment of a number of workers. For initial fund arrangement Government and Donor agencies or even banks will become interested considering the commercial aspects of the projects. What we need is the initiative of the municipal corporations. Present mayor of Dhaka north is a seasoned business personality, it is expected that if taken he can make the program turn into a reality.
Next issue is Green Dhaka. Due to rapid urbanization open spaces are turning into housing and commercial plots even people are reluctant to leave a single inches land unutilized and the turning worse day by day. In this connection panning to make city green seems to be another far cry. But plan declared by Mayor of utilizing roof tops is one possible solution. These roof tops could be converted to gardens and Kitchen gardens and get managed professionals. The roof tops will be rented to these firms like being rented to bill board's telephone company's antennas.
There is another area that remains unutilised and it is the vast area of river embankment and river banks stretching from Ashulia/Mirpur to Buriganga River. Both sides of the embankment could be turned into gardens by planting fruit bearing trees. These gardens could be leased out and the municipality could earn money from those. There is huge demand for fresh fruits in Dhaka; so there is a ready market for this. On the other hand it is likely to create job opportunities for a number of people as well as turning the area into Green Zone of the city. We can observe that there is a tendency of planting decorative trees instead of fruit-bearing trees. In some parks you will find even eucalyptus trees which reduce water level and some cases are responsible for desertification. But different types of fruits like mango, jackfruit, guava and coconut and many others could be planted there. In Sangshad Bhaban area it is hard to find Jackfruit trees which is our national fruit, but a large number of decorative palm trees which don't have any wood or food value. A single mango tree in Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj is leased out at a cost of at least ten thousand taka and according to quality and production it increases manifold. So if the authorities can utilise these areas properly and lease out them, they can easily raise the fund. Previously the authorities got a problem regarding maintaining road islands, but one decision to lease out these islands to business houses for advertising purposes has solved the problem in a better way. The municipality is earning money at the same time islands are turning beautiful and for business houses it is good media for advertising and promoting their products and services. So in the same way these two major problems of Dhaka city could be solved and the financial ability of the municipality could increase. We have four rivers around our city namely Balu, Turag, Sitalakkha and Buriganga. Vast areas of banks of these rivers are under land grabbers' control and municipal corporations can recover the areas and immediately turn these areas into a green belt of the city. City dwellers can pass their idle time over there and municipality can lease out these areas for generating fund for other development purposes.
I think policymakers are smarter than us and some of them have had vast business experience like mayor of Dhaka North and they have better innovative business ideas to implement and make the city green and clean. We need to find new areas to develop the city not only by arranging fund from government and imposing more taxes on city dwellers. If the projects prove commercially viable the other cities will follow the suit, this will contribute to our economic growth, employment generation and macro-economic developments.
Let us think differently to solve our problems. Let us draw a matrix like these two mayors with one objective and one action -- solving two problems of Dhaka City.
The writer is Assistant Professor, Royal University of Dhaka. Email: seahsan@gmail.com
Green Dhaka Clean Dhaka : Mission not Impossible
Syed Ejaz Ahsan | Published: May 23, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
Dwellers of the capital want to see such a green and clean Dhaka
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