Bangladesh News

The government’s plan to construct a 3.5-kilometre elevated roadway connecting Panthapath and Rampura without protecting Hatirjheel canal will cause perpetual waterlogging in the areas sprawling along the proposed structure.
The urban planners fear that the massive construction without a comprehensive programme for the surroundings might result in loss of Hatirjheel and the adjoining wetlands. It would damage the natural beauty as well.

The Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) has taken up the roadway project estimated to cost Tk 530 crore to ease traffic congestion at the ever-teeming Sonargaon crossing, where, a study says, fuel worth around Tk 70 lakh burns out every month due to gridlock.

But the plan does not include measures to leave intact Hatirjheel and the other water bodies, said sources.

The local government and rural development (LGRD) ministry has already given the seal of approval to the project and asked the DCC to start the work immediately, added the sources.

Chief Executive Officer of DCC Saifuddin Ahmed, however, claimed that the roadway would be constructed without disturbing the existing wetlands.

He said the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) has plans to protect Hatirjheel. Instead of closing it down, they would widen it, he said.

When asked about the already dying condition of the water body due to earth filling and encroachment on either side, the DCC official said the Rajuk could not start the protection work as the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) has yet to approve the project.

He said the proposal might be raised at the next meeting of Ecnec, the highest government body that appraises and approves all development projects and programmes.

The elevated roadway too waits to get the go-ahead from the Ecnec. According to sources, Japan has already pledged to commit Tk 300 crore to it. In a number of letters, they have urged the Bangladesh government to get down to construction, the sources added.

According to town planners, the elevated roadway would be of little use if it does not let the water beneath flow unhindered.

The project plan should have the actual breadth of the wetlands estimated and measures to renovate and protect those from earth filling and encroachment, they observed.

The architects and city planners describe the project, which is not designed to be linked up with other elevated roadways, as a piecemeal solution.

“We have no objection if the roadway is built without affecting Hatirjheel and other canals in the area,” observed Prof Nazrul Islam of Dhaka University, a noted urban expert.

He said the strategic transport plan (STP) recommends a flyover to reduce traffic congestion at Sonargaon point. It suggests that the structure should be built in such a way that composition of the existing waterbodies is not harmed.

Filling of wetlands would leave a negative impact on the city’s overall environment and lead to persistent waterlogging and floods, Islam added.

Referring to the recent floods in Jakarta and Mumbai, he said those cities have been experiencing floods and waterlogging due to filling of the city canals and waterbodies.

The Dhaka city will suffer similar fate if the canals and waterbodies are not preserved properly, he observed.

Earlier, the government had plans to keep the Hatirjheel canal intact but different quarters have encroached a large portion of the wetland and built heavy infrastructure.

“Hatirjheel must be there for absorbing the rainwater and keeping the ecological balance,” said Mubasshar Hussain, president of Institute of Architects Bangladesh (IAB).

“There should not be any piecemeal solution to the transport problems in the capital and elsewhere in the country,” he noted.

Hussain who was a member of strategic transport plan for greater Dhaka said an elevated roadway or flyover should come under a cohesive city plan taking account of the entire communication network.

Such a mammoth construction should be linked up with other roads and flyovers, he pointed out. Otherwise, it would only add to the abysmal traffic situation, thereby serving no purpose, he added.

According to the IAB president, Mohakhali flyover causes traffic jam in front of the Prime Minister’s Office because it stands isolated from the other major roadways.