Increase Dhakas drainage capacity
The heads
of two city corporations
must act now
Compared to past several years, this year the country is witnessing unusually heavy rainfall and in Dhaka city, the monsoon is creating great impact on the city dwellers life. On Tuesday, record rainfall was recorded in a day and the whole citys traffic came to a standstill. There is little doubt, this kind of huge shower could also jeopardize life in cities where there are sound drainage systems, but given that Dhaka is a city of traffic jams, the sufferings the commuters endured on the roads knew no bound on Monday. The situation became worse in areas like Rampura, Chowdhurypara and Mauchak where roads construction work under different development projects is now underway. The office goers and students remained virtually helpless.
The drainage system of Dhaka city is poor and everybody knows about this. When the two city corporations are asked about the condition of citys roads and the drainage system, they are usually found not to have with satisfactory answers. They just give a list of what they have done or are doing in the different parts of the capital in this regard. But the ground reality is that with minimum rainfall, the citys roads everywhere submerge with rainwater that causes immense sufferings to the people. Funds are allocated for improving the citys drainage system, media presents reports on the city corporations work, but the following year we find the same problem of rainwater stuck on the roads for hours together.
Scientists find link with the unusual behaviour of nature now with the ongoing climate change. There is no reason to doubt the veracity of impact of climate change on our environment, and it would be foolish to expect that next year there will not be rain in Dhaka city like this year. In fact, in the coming years, the city dwellers may experience even more rain than this year and the city should be made well-prepared to face such a situation.
The heads of two city corporations must act now. As they are responsible for improving the citys drainage system, they should seriously deal with the problem so that the problem does not cause unnecessary sufferings to the dwellers any more. And for this, they should first make a thorough study of the citys drainage capacity and find how it could be made better. If city experts from a foreign country are necessary to consult in this regard, they should do it as a matter of civic priority. If necessary, take adequate time to deliver this work.
