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Height ceiling eased in Gulshan, Uttara Ministry decision to allow 8-storey structures criticised by utility agencies, experts

Morshed Au Khan
A decision by the Ministry of Housing and Public Works to ease height restrictions on all six-storey buildings along streets in Gulshan and Uttara has been criticised by the utility agencies and town plan- ' nets, .
Thewaivingofheightrestrictions ; is set to pave the way for millions of ; square feet of additional commer- j ci al and residential floor space in ; areas already highly congested with ;
traffic and lackingin services such as gas, water, electricity and telephone lines.
Officials at Wasa (Water and Sewerage Authority), Titas Gas,
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BTTB (Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board), and Desa (Dhaka Electric Supply Authority) told The Daily Star that they had not been consulted prior to the decision being made.
One Wasa official said that the existing population was already suffering from water shortages in the city and that this new development would simply make the situation worse-
Town planners and architects at the Institute of Architects, Bangladesh (IAB) also say that such abrupt growth would have a seriously adverse environmental impact on the city including increased traffic congestion. Residents in the buildings would be deprived of adequate air and light, which could lead to health hazards, the architects also warned.
Mubasshar Hussain, president of IAB and vice-president of the Commonwealth Association of Architects, said the government should have consulted the experts before takingsuch a decision.
Hussain said about two months ago an expert committee comprising officials from the IAB, Rajuk, Rehab and the Department of Environment submitted a report to the Ministry of Housing and Public Works outlining a plan for future urban planning in Dhaka. The report iso clearly indicated what policy should be adopted to address the issue of high-rise structures in the city.
"We have no idea about the fate
of our report, which took us six months to prepare." Hussain told The Daily Star.
He said the government should adopt a similar policy to countries likeSingapore, HongKbngandother fast growing metropolises of Asia.
"For instance, if someone wants to build a 24-storey building with 80 apartments on a one bigha plot he should be allowed to do so only if he leaves an additional three bighas of green space around the structure," the IAB presidentsaid.
"This can only be done with proper planning and implementation of an agreed policy, otherwise if the present trend of city growth continues, I can assure you Dhaka will become a doomed city," said Hussain.
Public Works and Housing Minister Mirza Abbas defended the government move to waive height restrictions saying that, given the current rise in population, ne had no other option other than to allow eight story buildings in Gulshan and Uttara.
Abbas admitted that there were constraints regarding the existing utility services but said they would "automatically grow as soon as peoplestart to live there".
The ministry has told landowners that they should first seek the permission of Rajuk (Rajdhani Unnayun Kortripakkhha) for eight-storey structures, but that the Rajuk would adopt the new policy.
It is alleged that this policy is the result of lobbying on the part of developers andlandowners.