Dhaka losing habitability
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Mohiuddin Babar
INTERNATIONALLY famed The Economist recently bracketed Dhaka city as the second worst city to live. The Economist research cell conducts a survey across the world every year and lists the good cities to live in along with the bad ones. The survey is based on various factors including health care, infrastructure, environment etc. Indeed, the news of Dhaka being labeled as the second worst city could not be a bolt from the blue. With a fast degrading traffic system, continuous load shedding of electricity, growing shortage of water, marked fall in the supply of gas, deplorable road condition, a massive influx of mosquitoes and sporadic unhygienic conditions, residents and visitors in Dhaka city are already reeling in pain. One does not need to wait for any survey statistics as all these hazards are vividly visible all across this metropolitan city.
It is quite obvious that as a capital city, Dhaka will attract agglomeration of people. Being the seat of all administrative, judicial and economic functions, there has been a mammoth growth of population in this city over the decades. It has also been the destination of millions of people from other parts of the country who mainly come in for employment and business. The rate of migration has been one of the highest in the world.
Dhaka is, in fact, about to lose its carrying capacity. The infrastructure, mainly in terms of road network, water supply and sewerage, can not support the massive weight of the population. Soon after the independence of the country, Dhaka attracted on as the city remained the focal point of all political, administrative and social activities. In the eighties, the migration multiplied manifold due to sudden spurt in economic activities, mainly due to massive growth of ready made garments manufacturing sector. The city started changing its outlook with a wave of accompanying construction of buildings. The bulk of population concentration was so heavy that almost all water bodies were filled up and the city's demarcation line kept on shifting to suburbs. It is quite obvious that the city corporation or the concerned development agency or the utility service providers lost all forms of control and as result, degradation steered its way into habitability in this city.
The most dominant negative feature of Dhaka today is its traffic system. With over hundred new vehicles coming up on the road every day and no new road-space being created proportionately, the situation is only moving towards further aggravation. Mobility is coming to a standstill, particularly during day time business hours. There has been a plethora of trials to ease the pandemic traffic jams but to no satisfactory relief as yet. Solutions are still being debated but no concrete or tangible ones are conceived as yet. Policy makers and planners are eyeing for projects such as fly-over and underground rail network but those are long term ones. By the time these projects come to reality, the current situation will only be compounded. It needs to take up some instant and short term measures like massive increase in mass transit system by putting in buses and creating bus lanes like done in Jakarta and Mexico cities. Even, Japan is learnt to be adopting the bus lane system.
It is the dearth of dependable mass transit system that has encouraged the public, even the lower middle income group, to own a vehicle. If schools and offices had their respective buses to carry the children and the office goers, number of private vehicles would have been dramatically low.
Environmentally too, Dhaka is a city of negative trends. With so many vehicles on the move, there is continuous air pollution. With garbage littered every where, there is continuous spewing of methane gas and bad smell. With rivers encircling the city chemically polluted, water supplied to the city dwellers is unsafe. With the water bodies being filled up by unscrupulous developers, chances of flood water stagnation and failure of sanitation is grave. With dusts increasing due to uncontrolled constructions, health hazards are on the rise. All these make Dhaka environmentally unsafe.
Fingers should be pointed at Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) and Rajuk for the degradation of this city which was once so attractive to far away foreigners. While Rajuk has totally failed in forecasting and managing any time befitting plan for this city, the DCC has proved its unworthiness in ensuring even minimum comfort to the city dwellers. The residents have been paying taxes but they have been buying in menaces only. Both of these two organisations need massive overhauling. They are still regarded as dens of corruption which gives way for illegal developments and flaws in the delivery of services.
Truly, Dhaka city is fast losing its habitability. Much has been talked about in the media and public forums but there seems to be a "couldn't care less" attitude by the concerned authorities. If it goes on like this, Dhaka might graduate itself from its current second place to the top of list of worst cities in the next edition of The Economist's survey. Let us be cautious.
The writer is a free lancer. He can be reached at babar.mohi@gmail.com
INTERNATIONALLY famed The Economist recently bracketed Dhaka city as the second worst city to live. The Economist research cell conducts a survey across the world every year and lists the good cities to live in along with the bad ones. The survey is based on various factors including health care, infrastructure, environment etc. Indeed, the news of Dhaka being labeled as the second worst city could not be a bolt from the blue. With a fast degrading traffic system, continuous load shedding of electricity, growing shortage of water, marked fall in the supply of gas, deplorable road condition, a massive influx of mosquitoes and sporadic unhygienic conditions, residents and visitors in Dhaka city are already reeling in pain. One does not need to wait for any survey statistics as all these hazards are vividly visible all across this metropolitan city.
It is quite obvious that as a capital city, Dhaka will attract agglomeration of people. Being the seat of all administrative, judicial and economic functions, there has been a mammoth growth of population in this city over the decades. It has also been the destination of millions of people from other parts of the country who mainly come in for employment and business. The rate of migration has been one of the highest in the world.
Dhaka is, in fact, about to lose its carrying capacity. The infrastructure, mainly in terms of road network, water supply and sewerage, can not support the massive weight of the population. Soon after the independence of the country, Dhaka attracted on as the city remained the focal point of all political, administrative and social activities. In the eighties, the migration multiplied manifold due to sudden spurt in economic activities, mainly due to massive growth of ready made garments manufacturing sector. The city started changing its outlook with a wave of accompanying construction of buildings. The bulk of population concentration was so heavy that almost all water bodies were filled up and the city's demarcation line kept on shifting to suburbs. It is quite obvious that the city corporation or the concerned development agency or the utility service providers lost all forms of control and as result, degradation steered its way into habitability in this city.
The most dominant negative feature of Dhaka today is its traffic system. With over hundred new vehicles coming up on the road every day and no new road-space being created proportionately, the situation is only moving towards further aggravation. Mobility is coming to a standstill, particularly during day time business hours. There has been a plethora of trials to ease the pandemic traffic jams but to no satisfactory relief as yet. Solutions are still being debated but no concrete or tangible ones are conceived as yet. Policy makers and planners are eyeing for projects such as fly-over and underground rail network but those are long term ones. By the time these projects come to reality, the current situation will only be compounded. It needs to take up some instant and short term measures like massive increase in mass transit system by putting in buses and creating bus lanes like done in Jakarta and Mexico cities. Even, Japan is learnt to be adopting the bus lane system.
It is the dearth of dependable mass transit system that has encouraged the public, even the lower middle income group, to own a vehicle. If schools and offices had their respective buses to carry the children and the office goers, number of private vehicles would have been dramatically low.
Environmentally too, Dhaka is a city of negative trends. With so many vehicles on the move, there is continuous air pollution. With garbage littered every where, there is continuous spewing of methane gas and bad smell. With rivers encircling the city chemically polluted, water supplied to the city dwellers is unsafe. With the water bodies being filled up by unscrupulous developers, chances of flood water stagnation and failure of sanitation is grave. With dusts increasing due to uncontrolled constructions, health hazards are on the rise. All these make Dhaka environmentally unsafe.
Fingers should be pointed at Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) and Rajuk for the degradation of this city which was once so attractive to far away foreigners. While Rajuk has totally failed in forecasting and managing any time befitting plan for this city, the DCC has proved its unworthiness in ensuring even minimum comfort to the city dwellers. The residents have been paying taxes but they have been buying in menaces only. Both of these two organisations need massive overhauling. They are still regarded as dens of corruption which gives way for illegal developments and flaws in the delivery of services.
Truly, Dhaka city is fast losing its habitability. Much has been talked about in the media and public forums but there seems to be a "couldn't care less" attitude by the concerned authorities. If it goes on like this, Dhaka might graduate itself from its current second place to the top of list of worst cities in the next edition of The Economist's survey. Let us be cautious.
The writer is a free lancer. He can be reached at babar.mohi@gmail.com