Rajuk on its way to redevelop Old Dhaka

Imagine an Old Dhaka with wider roads, less congestion, better water and electricity supply.

That’s what the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) wants to achieve in its ambitious plan to refurbish the centuries-old Mughal-era parts of the capital city, better known as Old Dhaka.

The city development authority has selected seven spots for renovation of Old Dhaka where feasibility studies are going to start soon.

The spots are Islampur, Chawkbazar, Bongshal, Moulvibazar, Hazaribag, Swarighat and Kamrangirchar, where the dwellers face problems like narrow lanes, rundown buildings, high population density, risky electricity connection, lack of pure drinking water, decreasing open spaces and faulty drainage system, said Ashraful Islam, Chief City Planner of Rajuk and Project Director of Rajuk’s Detailed Area Plan (DAP).

These problems are making living in these parts of the capital really difficult. Besides, the dual risks of earthquakes and fire hazards are putting the lives of people who live in these areas in grave danger.

Currently, Old Dhaka lacks almost all kinds of civic amenities. That’s why Rajuk has decided to redevelop this part of the town so that people can enjoy a proper urban atmosphere.

Anisur Rahman, chairman of Rajuk, told UNB that they’ve discussed the redevelopment issue with lending organizations of many countries including China and Japan.

“We’ll take decisions in this regard very soon. The redevelopment works will be done with funds borrowed at very low interest rates,” Anisur said.

Anisur added that opinions of Old Dhaka’s inhabitants will get preference during the redevelopment process.

“Many multi-storied buildings have sprouted in Old Dhaka on only one to two decimal lands, which have turned the area into a very risky zone. In some places, there are even two buildings supported by only a single wall. These unplanned buildings don’t have any space for air to pass. We’ll put all these small pieces of land together and carry out a block-wise redevelopment program,” the chairman added.

Anisur hoped that after redevelopment, the rate of accidents will come down in Old Dhaka.

“I hope that the Old Dhaka people will cooperate with us in this initiative. We won’t change the ownership of land, so there won’t be any problems regarding this issue. The current owners of land in Old Dhaka will remain so even after redevelopment,” Anisur said.

Chief city planner Ashraful said that the feasibility study will start within the next couple of months.

“Initially, the feasibility study will be conducted at the seven selected spots. Later, the study will cover the entire Old Dhaka,” Ashraful said.

Old Dhaka has 11 wards and eight police stations under Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC). The main areas include Lalbagh, Hazaribag, Chawkbazar, Bongshal, Sutrapur, Sadarghat, Kotwali, Islampur, Babubazar, Wari, Gendaria, Shakharibazar, Golnagar, Lakhsmibazar, Tantibazar and Banglabazar.

According to DAP, Old Dhaka covers an area of 1131.46 acres of land. There are a total of 24,504 buildings in the area. Although there are DAP rules to construct buildings in Old Dhaka, no one is following them. As building owners aren’t leaving space for roads, ambulances and vehicles of fire fighting units can’t enter the building premises during an emergency. This is one of the reasons why block-wise redevelopment has become necessary for Old Dhaka, said the official.