Even in roads
where relatively fresh maintenance works were done, the same crumbled down into pitiable conditions after about only a year highlighting the poor quality of road maintenance works
in the city
Maintenance of the city�s roads
According to a study done recently, nearly 40 million taka is spent for maintenance works in only one kilometer of a road in Dhaka city . When such costly maintenance works become useless before even one year is over, then it requires no stretch of the imagination to realize what great waste of resources takes place in the name of road maintenance activities in the city.
As it is, those who know, they say that unthinkable plunder of public resources are happening in this area. In many cases, the use of brick pieces, sand and low quality bitumen in road repairing works are proving to be a complete waste in keeping the roads reasonably serviceable even for a short period of time. The present pot-holed conditions of the roads in many parts of Dhaka city are just terrible. Thus, citizens are one in demanding immediate steps to wipe out the corruption and doing of maintenance works properly on the citys roads on a sustainable basis.
Dhaka city is the biggest point of urban concentration in Bangladesh. It is also the hub or staging area for the greater part of the economic and commercial activities of the country. It should be obvious, therefore, that its thoroughfares, roads and lanes need to be in good shape round the year not only for the movement of its residents but its commercial and related cargoes as well.
Ease of movement on the roads translate into greater transportation efficiency for businesses reducing costs. But as the residents of this hapless city know it well from their own experiences, a large part of the citys roads presently remain in such conditions that the same cannot be accepted as even reasonably fit for the smooth movement of different transporters.
The damaged roads of the city are a developmental concern with economic implications. A media report-- sometime ago-- quoted the findings of a study that some Taka 200 billion a year are lost in Dhaka city from poor traffic movement. How much of that loss is due to the wretched physical conditions of the roads. ? It must be substantial indeed. Considering this factor alone, urgent execution of works are needed to get the damaged roads back into durable shape.
Even in roads where relatively fresh maintenance works were done, the same crumbled down into pitiable conditions after about only a year highlighting the poor quality of road maintenance works in the city.
