High-rises run high risks in Dhaka

Triggered by an unusual rise in the cost of land, Dhaka’s skyline has changed with an increasing number of high-rises coming up in the past couple of years. But about 80 per cent of them are in grave risk of fire hazards and earthquakes, experts say. Various studies conducted by urban experts have repeatedly warned about the lack of adherence to the Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) and Fire Safety Code (FSC) in the construction of most of the highrise buildings in the capital.

But several real estate companies are mushrooming in the meantime and are out to destroy rivers, canals and wetland in and around the city with illegal housing projects, mostly high-rises, to pile up ill-gotten wealth, the experts observe. Rajdhani Unnyan Kartripakkhya (RAJUK) data shows about 680 high-rise designs were

submitted to RAJUK in the last one year, among which 50 per cent had been rejected due to lack of compliance with either the BNBC or the FSC.

Experts say a shortage of land in the capital, coupled with an increase in the land demand, has made land prices soar in the capital by at least 400 per cent in the past couple of years. The government’s regulatory body has not been able to do much since an age-old land record system, taxation structure and cumbersome land transfer procedures have made the whole land system in the city unmanageable.

Various real estate companies are taking advantage of the old land records and the tendency of the land owners to fall for lucrative offers made by developers, said Prof. (Dr) Mehedi Ahmed Ansari, director of the Bangladesh Network Office for Urban Safety (BNUS) of BUET.

Dr Ansari told The Independent that the land owners opted to give their land to commercial highrise developers as the arrangement was lucrative for both land owners and developers.

“From BNUS, we have conducted a study on about 100 highrises in the capital and found that only 10 per cent of them are built with proper fire safety measures, a matter that is mandatory as per the BNBC in the construction of highrises,” he said.

According to the Fire Prevention and Dousing Act 2003 and the amended Building Construction Act 1952, all highrise buildings should have their own fire security measures and fire escapes, and the owners have to conduct fire drills at regular intervals. But even in highrises constructed with proper fire safety measures, fire safety drills are rarely practised because of which the fire at Bashundhara city had occurred, said Dr Ansari.

About the risk of earthquakes damaging the highrises, Dr Ansari said that more than 40 per cent land of the capital was filled-up land and highrises built on those once marshy stretches ran a high risk of sudden collapse.

He also said with the increase in land prices and a proliferation in the number of developers, the low-lying lands in the capital were being filled up without appropriate measures. “But these filled-up lands are vulnerable to earthquakes due to the soil’s liquifaction, ground subsidence, and the soil resonance,” he added.

Explaining the risk of earthquakes in filled up lands, Prof. (Dr) AMM Shafiullah, former vice-chancellor of BUET and a soil expert, said that with a decline in ground water table, the highrises on the filled-up land could face a sudden structural collapse even without an earthquake. If the water level falls, as it is happening in Dhaka, the soil under the buildings adjusts itself to the absence of water, he observed.

When it rains heavily in the monsoon after a long break, the groundwater water pushes the rainwater upwards, causing a movement on the ground, Dr Shafiullah said, adding that buildings can face structural collapse even without an earthquake.

Dr Shafiullah also pointed out another risk in the construction of highrises on filled-up land such as the resonance (the shaking in the structure), since the magnitude of the resonance of an earthquake is much greater in the filled-up land and on its structure.

High-rises run high risks in Dhaka

Triggered by an unusual rise in the cost of land, Dhakas skyline has changed with an increasing number of high-rises coming up in the past couple of years. But about 80 per cent of them are in grave risk of fire hazards and earthquakes, experts say. Various studies conducted by urban experts have repeatedly warned about the lack of adherence to the Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) and Fire Safety Code (FSC) in the construction of most of the highrise buildings in the capital. But several real estate companies are mushrooming in the meantime and are out to destroy rivers, canals and wetland in and around the city with illegal housing projects, mostly high-rises, to pile up ill-gotten wealth, the experts observe. Rajdhani Unnyan Kartripakkhya (RAJUK) data shows about 680 high-rise designs were submitted to RAJUK in the last one year, among which 50 per cent had been rejected due to lack of compliance with either the BNBC or the FSC. Experts say a shortage of land in the capital, coupled with an increase in the land demand, has made land prices soar in the capital by at least 400 per cent in the past couple of years. The governments regulatory body has not been able to do much since an age-old land record system, taxation structure and cumbersome land transfer procedures have made the whole land system in the city unmanageable. Various real estate companies are taking advantage of the old land records and the tendency of the land owners to fall for lucrative offers made by developers, said Prof. (Dr) Mehedi Ahmed Ansari, director of the Bangladesh Network Office for Urban Safety (BNUS) of BUET. Dr Ansari told The Independent that the land owners opted to give their land to commercial highrise developers as the arrangement was lucrative for both land owners and developers. From BNUS, we have conducted a study on about 100 highrises in the capital and found that only 10 per cent of them are built with proper fire safety measures, a matter that is mandatory as per the BNBC in the construction of highrises, he said. According to the Fire Prevention and Dousing Act 2003 and the amended Building Construction Act 1952, all highrise buildings should have their own fire security measures and fire escapes, and the owners have to conduct fire drills at regular intervals. But even in highrises constructed with proper fire safety measures, fire safety drills are rarely practised because of which the fire at Bashundhara city had occurred, said Dr Ansari. About the risk of earthquakes damaging the highrises, Dr Ansari said that more than 40 per cent land of the capital was filled-up land and highrises built on those once marshy stretches ran a high risk of sudden collapse. He also said with the increase in land prices and a proliferation in the number of developers, the low-lying lands in the capital were being filled up without appropriate measures. But these filled-up lands are vulnerable to earthquakes due to the soils liquifaction, ground subsidence, and the soil resonance, he added. Explaining the risk of earthquakes in filled up lands, Prof. (Dr) AMM Shafiullah, former vice-chancellor of BUET and a soil expert, said that with a decline in ground water table, the highrises on the filled-up land could face a sudden structural collapse even without an earthquake. If the water level falls, as it is happening in Dhaka, the soil under the buildings adjusts itself to the absence of water, he observed. When it rains heavily in the monsoon after a long break, the groundwater water pushes the rainwater upwards, causing a movement on the ground, Dr Shafiullah said, adding that buildings can face structural collapse even without an earthquake. Dr Shafiullah also pointed out another risk in the construction of highrises on filled-up land such as the resonance (the shaking in the structure), since the magnitude of the resonance of an earthquake is much greater in the filled-up land and on its structure.