A plan for Dhaka city's regeneration
Saturday, 29 November 2008
Khondkar Abdus Saleque
Bangladesh's capital Dhaka is already a mega city in the context of population density. The city is about one-fourth the size of Melbourne and one sixth of Sydney but it has a population of over 14 million. Australia has a population of 22 million.
City canals in Dhaka no longer exist. The rivers around the city are dying due to lack of dredging and grabbing by encroachers. The water of the Buriganga and the Sitalakya has become extremely polluted. The subsurface water table is dipping progressively due to continuous drawdown. The city is getting increasingly vulnerable to earthquake.
The city has only about 8.0 per cent roads. Most of these are narrow in consideration of the huge fleet of vehicles of different types. The public transportation system is not at all organised. Transport owners do not have minimum respect for traffic rules. Mushroom growth of readymade garment (RMG) and other small industries in major residential areas have put enormous pressure on overloaded utility supply infrastructures.
Gas, water, electricity and telephone providing systems are overstretched. City air is polluted due to dusts, smokes and obnoxious gas emissions. On a week day, it sometime takes two hours to travel about 20 KM from Dhaka Airport to the city centre. It is chaos and confusions everywhere.
Dhaka desperately needs massive overhauling in all sectors. Dhaka needs very organized metropolitan governance. Dhaka needs a visionary city mayor, an honest and committed and truly functional city council. The writer in the last eighteen months has very intimately interacted with some important Queensland City Councils in connection with an assignment in Australia. He tried to learn from their immediate and long term visions and plans. He also lived in Melbourne city and learnt about its plan. Well, these cities are much less crowded and have very organized and focused development-oriented city councils and communities.
But there are many things that Bangladesh can replicate. To meet the present and emerging challenges, there must be integrated planning to save Dhaka city from the massive crisis that looms large for it.
Dhaka is growing in all directions. East to west, north to south, people from different districts and towns are moving to Dhaka in search of better living, better opportunities. People losing everything by river erosion, natural calamities etc, all move to Dhaka and take shelter in the slum areas. These are going on for years together .No government sincerely tried to decentralize the activities and relocate various economic activities outside Dhaka. For the sake of very survival, we must without delay develop the adjacent districts of Dhaka like Narayanganj, Gazipur, Tangail, Mymensingh, Narshingdi, Comilla and Brahmanbaria to ease migration pressures on Dhaka.
Dhaka badly needs a rapid transit system. Rapid transits in Dhaka will transport a large number of people at high frequency. The extent of rapid transit system varies greatly between cities, and there are multiple transport strategies that can take advantage of a rapid transit system. Dhaka is relatively small .The system can cater to the entire city and suburb if carefully planned. From the city limits the commuters moving to, and from, Dhaka for various reasons every day can avail other transports like buses, trains etc.
The Kamlapur Railway Station can be gradually moved out to Tongi and beyond .Alternate rail link with Chittagong and Khulna may also be planned now from Narayanganj. In addition to this, the rivers around the city can be dredged to maintain navigability round the year and riverine transportation system like City Cat of Brisbane River can be introduced.
Surface rail communication has lots of room for improvement. But all depends on how we create additional generation and transportation of power in the next five years. There is no alternative to running electric trains. For that, the required facilities need to be created. Just imagine how our intelligent people are impeding our power generation efforts by creating unnecessary obstruction to coal mining. If adequate coal is available, we can have at least three to four large base-load power plants to secure our energy and think of fast moving electric trains.
Dhaka city centre must be free from slow moving traffic. Alternate employment opportunities may be created for the poor rickshaw pullers. Undisciplined parking in the city areas must be restricted. All major government or large private offices must have required underground or multilayer parking facilities. When Kawran Bazar market is moved, a multistoried large parking arrangement may be built there by the Dhaka City Corporation. Dhaka Cantonment may be gradually moved out of the city. This area is a major impediment to the traffic movement. If it is moved out to Gazipur, much of city traffic congestion will ease.
Some essential flyovers and elevated express highway must be built at congested city centres. The problem of Gulisthan - Jatrabari Fly-over must be sorted out. If the present developer fails to do it, the contract must be scrapped establishing their failures and re-tendered and awarding of contract be made in a transparent way. Another elevated road may be built with required connecting roads and branches from Mahakhali to Dhaka Medical College. This will take away much of traffic loads crowding the city centre. Another elevated road may connect Bangla Motor to Atish Dipankar road.
Dhaka city must restrict the growth of transport plying on the city roads. All polluting transports must be phased out .Only CNG-run vehicles should be allowed to ply in Dhaka city from 2010. The facilities to convert into CNG and CNG pumps must be increased. The Mohakahli and Sayedabad bus terminals must be moved out. Mahakhali bus stand may be moved to a suitable location between Tongi and Gazipur and Sayedabad bus stand may be moved on the other side of the Sitalakya river. Another bridge can be built over the Sitalakhya. Shuttle bus service may be introduced from these new bus terminals for commuters to move into the city. No transport without the city registration may be allowed into the city, without paying relatively heavy tolls.
City dwellers must grow the habit of walking and cycling. There should be dedicated cycle track in city roads. The city footpaths must be kept free of unauthorized occupation and hawkers. Hawkers may be rehabilitated in various city markets and week-end markets.
Very little is heard about the city circular road these days. Dhaka city has three rivers around it - the Buriganga, the Sitalakhya and the Turag. These rivers can be again turned into lifeblood for the city. These rivers need extensive dredging to ensure navigability round the year. The city circular river way can be a very useful communication route. The dredged material can be used to make city protection embankment and on the embankment the city circular road and even surface rail track can be laid. The surface water can be treated in treatment plants to create additional water .The water can be extensively used for irrigation. The excess water flowing through these rivers in the monsoon may not cause flooding, if we increase holding capacity by continuous and organized dredging.
All the historic city canals should be restored and the canal banks must be turned into embankments. Many cities of the world have canals flowing through the cities. The writer has seen it in Amsterdam. The Buriganga and the Turag can easily be the same to Dhaka as the Brisbane river to Brisbane. If we can go a little further, Dhaka can have advanced water treatment plant to treat city effluents and the recycled water can be used for irrigation and industrial purposes.
Capital Dhaka is the mirror of Bangladesh. If Dhaka remains energy-starved, it creates wrong image for the entire country. Various city suburbs planned for domestic dwelling have now become commercial and industrial growth centres. Dhanmondi, Mipurr, Mohammadpur, Banani, Malibagh, Rampura, Mahakhali and Tongi Diversion Road have witnessed mushroom growth of readymade garments and various other small and medium capacity industries which consume huge quantity of energy legally or illegally. These impact upon the quality and quantity of energy supply. Lack of effective coordination among utility providers and absence of metropolitan governance are other reasons for the undisciplined energy supply scenario. Rajuk and Dhaka City Corporation never took the role of city planners or development controllers. The RMG, leather industries and other industries must be moved out of city areas. RMG in the outskirts of the city and leather industries to leather complex well beyond the city's limits will relieve the city from substantial energy load and help the environment immensely.
We love our country. We love our historic Dhaka city. With patriotism, commitment and dedication, we can change it in a decade into a busy bustling beautiful city.
Bangladesh's capital Dhaka is already a mega city in the context of population density. The city is about one-fourth the size of Melbourne and one sixth of Sydney but it has a population of over 14 million. Australia has a population of 22 million.
City canals in Dhaka no longer exist. The rivers around the city are dying due to lack of dredging and grabbing by encroachers. The water of the Buriganga and the Sitalakya has become extremely polluted. The subsurface water table is dipping progressively due to continuous drawdown. The city is getting increasingly vulnerable to earthquake.
The city has only about 8.0 per cent roads. Most of these are narrow in consideration of the huge fleet of vehicles of different types. The public transportation system is not at all organised. Transport owners do not have minimum respect for traffic rules. Mushroom growth of readymade garment (RMG) and other small industries in major residential areas have put enormous pressure on overloaded utility supply infrastructures.
Gas, water, electricity and telephone providing systems are overstretched. City air is polluted due to dusts, smokes and obnoxious gas emissions. On a week day, it sometime takes two hours to travel about 20 KM from Dhaka Airport to the city centre. It is chaos and confusions everywhere.
Dhaka desperately needs massive overhauling in all sectors. Dhaka needs very organized metropolitan governance. Dhaka needs a visionary city mayor, an honest and committed and truly functional city council. The writer in the last eighteen months has very intimately interacted with some important Queensland City Councils in connection with an assignment in Australia. He tried to learn from their immediate and long term visions and plans. He also lived in Melbourne city and learnt about its plan. Well, these cities are much less crowded and have very organized and focused development-oriented city councils and communities.
But there are many things that Bangladesh can replicate. To meet the present and emerging challenges, there must be integrated planning to save Dhaka city from the massive crisis that looms large for it.
Dhaka is growing in all directions. East to west, north to south, people from different districts and towns are moving to Dhaka in search of better living, better opportunities. People losing everything by river erosion, natural calamities etc, all move to Dhaka and take shelter in the slum areas. These are going on for years together .No government sincerely tried to decentralize the activities and relocate various economic activities outside Dhaka. For the sake of very survival, we must without delay develop the adjacent districts of Dhaka like Narayanganj, Gazipur, Tangail, Mymensingh, Narshingdi, Comilla and Brahmanbaria to ease migration pressures on Dhaka.
Dhaka badly needs a rapid transit system. Rapid transits in Dhaka will transport a large number of people at high frequency. The extent of rapid transit system varies greatly between cities, and there are multiple transport strategies that can take advantage of a rapid transit system. Dhaka is relatively small .The system can cater to the entire city and suburb if carefully planned. From the city limits the commuters moving to, and from, Dhaka for various reasons every day can avail other transports like buses, trains etc.
The Kamlapur Railway Station can be gradually moved out to Tongi and beyond .Alternate rail link with Chittagong and Khulna may also be planned now from Narayanganj. In addition to this, the rivers around the city can be dredged to maintain navigability round the year and riverine transportation system like City Cat of Brisbane River can be introduced.
Surface rail communication has lots of room for improvement. But all depends on how we create additional generation and transportation of power in the next five years. There is no alternative to running electric trains. For that, the required facilities need to be created. Just imagine how our intelligent people are impeding our power generation efforts by creating unnecessary obstruction to coal mining. If adequate coal is available, we can have at least three to four large base-load power plants to secure our energy and think of fast moving electric trains.
Dhaka city centre must be free from slow moving traffic. Alternate employment opportunities may be created for the poor rickshaw pullers. Undisciplined parking in the city areas must be restricted. All major government or large private offices must have required underground or multilayer parking facilities. When Kawran Bazar market is moved, a multistoried large parking arrangement may be built there by the Dhaka City Corporation. Dhaka Cantonment may be gradually moved out of the city. This area is a major impediment to the traffic movement. If it is moved out to Gazipur, much of city traffic congestion will ease.
Some essential flyovers and elevated express highway must be built at congested city centres. The problem of Gulisthan - Jatrabari Fly-over must be sorted out. If the present developer fails to do it, the contract must be scrapped establishing their failures and re-tendered and awarding of contract be made in a transparent way. Another elevated road may be built with required connecting roads and branches from Mahakhali to Dhaka Medical College. This will take away much of traffic loads crowding the city centre. Another elevated road may connect Bangla Motor to Atish Dipankar road.
Dhaka city must restrict the growth of transport plying on the city roads. All polluting transports must be phased out .Only CNG-run vehicles should be allowed to ply in Dhaka city from 2010. The facilities to convert into CNG and CNG pumps must be increased. The Mohakahli and Sayedabad bus terminals must be moved out. Mahakhali bus stand may be moved to a suitable location between Tongi and Gazipur and Sayedabad bus stand may be moved on the other side of the Sitalakya river. Another bridge can be built over the Sitalakhya. Shuttle bus service may be introduced from these new bus terminals for commuters to move into the city. No transport without the city registration may be allowed into the city, without paying relatively heavy tolls.
City dwellers must grow the habit of walking and cycling. There should be dedicated cycle track in city roads. The city footpaths must be kept free of unauthorized occupation and hawkers. Hawkers may be rehabilitated in various city markets and week-end markets.
Very little is heard about the city circular road these days. Dhaka city has three rivers around it - the Buriganga, the Sitalakhya and the Turag. These rivers can be again turned into lifeblood for the city. These rivers need extensive dredging to ensure navigability round the year. The city circular river way can be a very useful communication route. The dredged material can be used to make city protection embankment and on the embankment the city circular road and even surface rail track can be laid. The surface water can be treated in treatment plants to create additional water .The water can be extensively used for irrigation. The excess water flowing through these rivers in the monsoon may not cause flooding, if we increase holding capacity by continuous and organized dredging.
All the historic city canals should be restored and the canal banks must be turned into embankments. Many cities of the world have canals flowing through the cities. The writer has seen it in Amsterdam. The Buriganga and the Turag can easily be the same to Dhaka as the Brisbane river to Brisbane. If we can go a little further, Dhaka can have advanced water treatment plant to treat city effluents and the recycled water can be used for irrigation and industrial purposes.
Capital Dhaka is the mirror of Bangladesh. If Dhaka remains energy-starved, it creates wrong image for the entire country. Various city suburbs planned for domestic dwelling have now become commercial and industrial growth centres. Dhanmondi, Mipurr, Mohammadpur, Banani, Malibagh, Rampura, Mahakhali and Tongi Diversion Road have witnessed mushroom growth of readymade garments and various other small and medium capacity industries which consume huge quantity of energy legally or illegally. These impact upon the quality and quantity of energy supply. Lack of effective coordination among utility providers and absence of metropolitan governance are other reasons for the undisciplined energy supply scenario. Rajuk and Dhaka City Corporation never took the role of city planners or development controllers. The RMG, leather industries and other industries must be moved out of city areas. RMG in the outskirts of the city and leather industries to leather complex well beyond the city's limits will relieve the city from substantial energy load and help the environment immensely.
We love our country. We love our historic Dhaka city. With patriotism, commitment and dedication, we can change it in a decade into a busy bustling beautiful city.