DHAKA, unlike other mega cities in the developed countries, has almost failed to provide basic utilities to its residents and the failure of administrative functionaries leads to the city’s paralysis in every sphere, including severe traffic jams, basic health, housing, education facilities, and scarcity of power and water like utilities, the basic elements for life. The population burden on the eleventh most populous city in the world draws concern as to whether the city can sustain the 3.6 percent annual growth in population it is currently experiencing.
A National English daily carried a report which said the current population of 1.7 crore in Dhaka is already deprived of basic facilities like housing, healthcare, electricity and clean water. If the population continues to increase, residing in Dhaka would become unbearable. Iqbal Habib, an environmentalist, forecast a bleak scenario in the capital, considering the density of its population. A UN report styled “World Urbanisation Prospects: The 2014 Revision”, projected Dhaka would become the 6th most crowded city by 2030 with a population of over 2.7 crore.
Though, it is easier and less expensive to provide housing, health care, education, electricity and clean water services to urban residents than to a similar number of people living in rural areas the slums surrounding the city make it much more difficult to accomplish that. The population problem directly emanates from the fact that Dhaka is the capital city, seat of all decision making and all powers – political, administrative, financial etc. – are concentrated there. There is a popular perception for the place having endless job opportunities, and that nothing can be accomplished without someone’s approval from there stimulates people to continuously come to the city from rural areas. The 6 percent migration rate to Dhaka results in urban poverty, vulnerability and exclusion while the country’s population growth rate is 1.34 percent per annum. Population growth of Dhaka should be checked through decentralization and drawing up countrywide urban plans, instead of city-wise plans. The communications network also needs to be improved.
We have been hearing tall talks about the importance of comprehensive urban planning or total population planning after the inception of the country in 1971 but all the plans went awry in the course of time. We again recommend the government to go for decentralizing administrative power, business, trade, manufacturing sector, industries – readymade garments, leathers, ceramic and yarn and cotton – to the other cities and even in remote rural areas, thus enabling the development of also those areas. Furthermore, we suggest the government to make an all-comprehensive mega-plan including every sector to make the city livable.
The failure to make Dhaka the capital livable is disgraceful. The residents of Dhaka came out in the street to let know their anger. But the crisis is the incompetence of the authorities and there is nobody to punish anyone. Everybody has an excuse for doing nothing.
