Dr. Md. Shairul Mashreque and Nasir Uddin :
Planned urbanization with a proper scheme of housing and settlement for the low and medium income groups is woefully missing. Dhaka is dotted with small-unit settlements at the fringe of each residential locus. Even some posh enclaves like Dhanmondi, Gulshan Bardhara, Boshundhara, and Banani are changing in a negative direction losing much of the characteristic of an ideal home. Original residential pattern full of well planned accommodations built around open space is gradually fading.
Along with high rise buildings in a seemingly fast growing skyline city there are numerous dilapidated huts and tined houses built up mostly by the people in the lower decile in terms of income and calorie consumption. The changing face of Dhaka, once called a green city, is characterized by ‘apartment blocks’ ‘sprouting like mushroom’. It has thus become ‘an urban jungle’. Now-days houses with gardens and orchards are hardly available in Dhaka. Multi-storied flats are close to each other with a little space in between-no park, no playground. Whereas Kolkata, once identified as the most congested Asian city, now looks impressive with numerous open space, fields and parks near residential locus. The residential enclave (salt lake in Kalkata is well planned with rich amenities and communication facilities). Open city like Chittagong endowed with rich natural infrastructures has somewhat been affected by unplanned urbanization – an emerging skyline city.
The poor mostly working class consisting of factory labors, rickshaw pullers, vendors and house-maids live in slum areas in squatter settlements. In Chittagong risk-prone slums are situated along hill-side or on hill tops frequently visited by natural hazards. Distressingly many dwellers were victims of land slide during monsoon that wrecks havoc taking heavy toll of deaths and injuries.
The government is planning to develop 22,800 plots and build 26,000 apartments in the next three years, according to budget disclosure. Housing for all is contained in vision 2021. Government will provide accommodations to the rural residents through rural housing schemes ‘around the growth centers, in each union and upazila’ with modern facilities in the urban areas. The plan of the government is to provide residential accommodation to all also includes ‘insolvent freedom fighters’. An initiative has been taken to ‘build shelter homes for the floating population in the urban areas for creating ’employment opportunities’.
Possession of apartment in the metropolitan urban areas has become a pretty tough. It is like a golden dear. Everybody is hankering after money to chase the golden dear. For the poor and fixed income group possessing apartment is a distant dream.
Every year the government announces national budget. The budget attempts to allocate funds to all policy sectors and sub-sectors. In recent years public budgets have stressed a good deal of importance to housing sector. Because outgrowth of high rise building in Dhaka and Chittagong have rather vitiated urban environment. All the same vertical growth of urbanization weak a cluster of multi-stage building even occupying nock and corner of the city disturb human and traffic movement. Our apartment culture is devoid of humanitarian consideration. Because the urban poor remaining in squatter settlement and low income middle families cannot afford to purchase apartment. Due to inadequate accommodation facilities along with unadjusted house rent, the service holders especially government services are to face a terrific condition. This situation is not favourable for attracting talent students towards government services.
The budget provides a scope for the black money makers to purchase apartment by paying tax. We are morally constrained from allowing them to do so as they earn a lot from illegal activities like embezzlement, kickbacks, bribery and fraud, smuggling, hoarding and black marketing, tax evasion and ‘outright tax fraud’.
In the case of apartment purchase by whitening black money the rates of tax is fixed at per square meter-TK.400, TK600, TK800, TK1000 and TK.1500 for ‘different size and locations’. Once ill-gotten money finds an outlet to come into play the outcome will be disastrous for the commoners. Their hopes for the flat or apartment are sure to be dashed. For, black money as bad money will resultantly drive legally earned good money out of circulation so far as the potential sector like real estate is concerned. The destinies of the low and middle income groups aspiring for strategic possession like apartment will be enveloped in the darkness of despair and despondency. REHAB’s scheme of housing for the economically disadvantaged section in the metropolitan cities will be difficult to implement once the criminal syndicate takes upper hand increasing market prices of cement, iron and other construction materials. Because only legalised black money may have the chance to float commanding valued resource like apartment to be sold at an exorbitant rate far beyond the affordability of the commoners. Of recent house-boom in Dhaka is a boon to the economically affluent and bane to the commoners.
Steps should be taken to ‘revise national housing policy 1999’ and to reform Bangladesh national building code, 1993 to make ‘housing and construction activities safer, sustainable and streamlined’.
Admittedly housing problem is now an awfully stupendous one all over the country. Well, the government has the plan to provide house for all including the rural citizens. The disadvantaged population supposed to benefit from social safety net need residential accommodation as the basic need. For this reason housing for all should have been brought under social safety net to be extended with much enhanced allocation. Otherwise the expectation of the low income section for a house will be turned into frustration-all to the trepidation of the policy makers.
