& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Reclaim roads, footpaths from illegal occupation

Noted urban experts urge government at conference of Centre for Development Communication, Bangladesh Institute of Planners

Staff Correspondent
The government must reclaim all of the capital's existing roads and footpaths from illegal occupation as an immediate measure to ease public movement, said noted urban experts at a conference yesterday.
It must also stop giving approval to commercial establishments without a comprehensive traffic impact assessment, said Prof Sarwar Jahan of the urban planning department of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet).
Citing that pedestrians account for 20 percent of the over three crore trips running daily in the capital, he said the government has also to restrict illegal on-street parking and restore circular waterways to help traffic mobility.
The Centre for Development Communication (CDC) with the Bangladesh Institute of Planners (BIP)
organised the conference on "Dhaka for the future generation: Our action", financed by the German embassy in Dhaka and held at the BIP auditorium in the capital.
Of the total trips, eight million are by pedal-powered rickshaws while only 3.8 percent by private cars, said Maruf Rahman, national advocacy officer ofWork for a Better Bangladesh.
An average of six lakh people every year add to Dhaka's population, which is now over 1.5 crore, said Mahbub un Nabi, a retired professor of the Buet department. “Dhaka's urbanisation problems can never be resolved with the onrush of ever-increasing population," he said.
Prof M Tamim of Buet, also a former adviser to a caretaker government, stressed upon decentralisation of investment so that people do not have to rush to the capital to meet every need.
Mubasshar Hussain, former presi-
dent of the Institute of Architects Bangladesh, said the entire issue of planned urbanisation depends on governance, which was now absent.
The organisers last September launched this research-based consultation on city governance, urbanisation, population and housing, transportation, utility services, public spaces, disaster management, urban economy and conservation of heritage which would act as recommendations for the government.
Former BIP General Secretary Khondaker M Ansar Hossain presented recommendations on utility services and Prof Ishrat Islam of Buet on environment management while the remaining issues by the others on the previous two days of the three-day event.
BIP President Golam Rahman chaired the sessions while CDC Executive Director Muhammad Jahangir moderated those.