The city’s 82 percent surface land remains covered in concrete, posing a serious threat to an already worsening situation, experts said on Saturday.
The remaining 18 percent surface land is also likely to go under the concrete cover if immediate and effective measures are not taken.
The experts came up with the warning at a press conference on 'Air, Environment and Livability of Dhaka City State of Green, Water, Open Space and Concrete Cover' at the Planners Tower in the city.
Bangladesh Institute of Planners (BIP) organised the seminar. BIP President Akter Mahmud and ex President Dr A K M Abul Kalam took part in the discussion while its General Secretary Dr Adil Mohammed Khan presented the keynote at the seminar.
They termed capital Dhaka a profit-making city while saying, indiscriminate construction of various high rise buildings under the very nose of the authorities concerned, is going on unabated.
Taking lesson from Dhaka city’s latest situation, the government and other non-government agencies will have to build other cities in a planned way in order to make them viable and livable.
A city should have 15 percent to 20 percent green space, 10 percent to 15 percent water reservoirs, parks and vast open space in order to make it livable, the speakers said. Akter Mahmud said, the load capacity of capital Dhaka ended many years ago. “We are now living in an overloaded city.
We must rethink when going for further construction of any building or structure. Keeping in mind the latest situation of the capital, both government and non-government agencies will have to frame strategies for construction of new buildings or structures,” he said.
Abul Kalam said, goodwill is urgently needed in order to build a planned city.
“Everything can be possible if we all have goodwill. From right now, we will have to do everything in a planned way. And the remaining space will have to be developed in a planned and scientific way,” he said. The experts said, although the country has made good economic progress over the years, its capital city is still facing serious problems.
They said, as Dhaka is a densely populated city, the government will have to take effective measures to reduce pressure on it. Every resident of the capital city deserves better services, they said, while adding, the government should make effective plans with suggestions from experts in the relevant field to make capital Dhaka a livable city.
The experts said that proper planning, implementation, strict enforcement of law, decentralisation, effective coordination among the government bodies, active role of the authorities concerned and the government’s strong commitment are imperative to making Dhaka a livable city.
Adil Mohammed Khan in his keynote paper recommended building green area based on its locality, green fence around the city and recovering the grabbed water bodies and reservoirs.
Besides, trees and plants will have to be planted around the capital’s water bodies and reservoirs. Apart from these, city forestation is also urgently needed in this regard.