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Giving Dhaka a new character

ERSHAD KHANDKER
THE Dhaka city we want to live in is different from the reality. This is normal because the reality is to live in a crime-infested city where finding justice against injustice is like searching for the lost treasures of king Solomon's city. We are a relatively young nation and with a developing economy. Gleaming skyscrapers, open-air cafes, sprawling parks and weaving meandering tracts of monorail and underground subway are wishing for too much. Dhaka city corporation development budget could not dream of providing such amenities to the citizens.
Dhaka city grinds to a choking halt, as the limited roads are clogged up with the great phalanx of cars, buses, trucks, rickshaws and pedestrians using the same road in a daily show of mindless chaos. Urban planning, as a concept seems to have escaped the successive city council members and the successive governments of Bangladesh. This is not a rhetorical remonstration. We do need a new character emerging for the city, to enable our beloved Dhaka to put its best foot forward. We need to do the best we can with the resources available.
A township can spring in one particular place for a variety of reasons. The discovery of gold, sweet water source, high yielding land and much of it available easily By people in flight from injustice or famine and discovering new land to populate. As a town grows with trade, other townships spring up. People earn money, go places and educate themselves. In the meantime, the town government can oversea development of public utilities. We see ancient civilizations well planned with thought given to public safety, comfort and security. Therefore, we know that people even in the ancient world had clear notions about their city being well planned for the comfort of the citizens. The concept is nothing new.
Dhaka city dwellers have been given a raw deal. That could be said to be the case. The main defence of the Dhaka city council officials would be to point that, the capital city has serious problem with overpopulation. Exodus of people from the villages was not quite an overnight event. All urban cities or capital cities face migration from the villages, of largely unskilled labourers and poor homeless destitutes coming to the city to try and generate some income. Beijing is famous for becoming overcrowded. However, no city displays such apathy in developing its own character. We have a feel of total chaos in traffic, neon signs and bill boards put up haphazardly mirroring the chaos,
island and road dividers installed and broken up and above all, the spread and wanton nature of crime and the pathetic laxity in preventing such crimes.
A city has a physical layout, an environment and a way of life. An urban centre invariably needs to be planned. There are actual urban planners who do nothing else but plan cities in keeping with the needs of the citizens. The famous French architect and city planner, La Corbusier, planned the city of Chandigarh. Dhaka city as such is not beyond repair. If you look at Gulshan and Dhanmondi you see a good example of city life. However, wanton permits being given to business and schools is marring the residential nature.
Introduce a toll for visit to Motijheel during certain business hours. People who do not have offices in Motijheel would pay this toll. This should be computerized. Cars passing by would be registered in a camera and automatic billing could be done against each owner. A cheap device installed in cars could tell them the total amount as they pass by every time. This payment could be paid at the end of the month at BRTA. Those unwilling to pay the toll would need to take other longer routes. And those paying toll would be given offers of easy facilities at BRTA and they would be given incentives like hassle free services
for their cars. A flyover may divert people who are on the inter-district routes. This would ease congestion.
I believe that a whole new character change can be planned for Dhaka city. The government should underwrite the expense for building new flyovers. The toll collected from the flyovers should be given to the city council. This money could be used to build parks and lakes wherever possible. Old buildings should be condemned with their owners given compensation. I believe that Dhaka city policemen should be given an increase in pay and privileges. The policemen could then be convinced to work efficiently .The policemen would be subject to stricter performance review and city dwellers could lodge complaints against corruption and expect quick and efficient rectification from desk policemen. City council officials may also be given higher pay to stop corruption.
A new apex body within the city council headed by the mayor could supervise all this. And the offices of this body should be attached with the prime minister's secretariat quiet like the offices of the board of investment (BOI). We could be sure that donors would come forward to help. We need a quick rethinking. Let us try and raise awareness and call for change as much as we can.