Love ,The City of Dhaka

Dhaka, crisscrossed by the Buriganga, Balu, Turag, and many rivulets, canals and marshy lowlands, had once a stable ecosystem. Because of unplanned development and indifferent attitude of the Rajuk and all the past governments, Dhaka has lost its glamour and liveliness. Dhaka is choking to death with its entire population who love and still live in Dhaka. Dhaka is still the city where money flies in the air, sort of. The people of undeveloped and deprived rural areas still flock to Dhaka with the last hope of survival and livelihood. The neglected city, Dhaka, is still embracing them with great affection. All the policymakers of the country live in Dhaka, breath in Dhaka but no one looks around. Unplanned expansion, both vertical and horizontal, is putting unbearable strain on the city. The rivers, cannels, marshy lowlands and agricultural lands around Dhaka got grabbed and filled by the musclemen of land grabbers and developers. One single instance will tell you how much land Dhaka, once a beautiful city, lost to dishonest elements. The kingdom of Bhawal once owned bulk of land of Dhaka. In the ‘70s and ’80, unholy alliances of corrupt bureaucrats, businessmen and some elements attached with the judiciary system prepared forged documents, by using old judicial stamps, specially formulated ink and false witnesses and transferred most of Bhawal King’s land properties legally (!) to their names. If we have a master plan for Dhaka’s revival and if we start addressing those issues one by one, Dhaka might get better and might smile up again.