13 bridges around Dhaka to be pulled down
Dhaka, March 31 (bdnews24.com) A government taskforce has identified 13 bridgesin and around Dhaka to be pulled down and rebuilt to make waterways underneath them more pliable for large water vessels.
The high level taskforce headed by shipping minister Shahjahan Khan asked relevant government authorities on Wednesday to pull down the bridges.
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13 bridges around Dhaka to be pulled down | Bangladesh | bdnews24.com
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An incredible decision indeed!
Shamsul Huq Zahid
The taskforce on rivers, headed by Minister for Shipping Shahjahan Khan, in a meeting held recently decided to demolish, at least, 13 bridges over rivers flowing along the Dhaka city for not having adequate clearance height.
The taskforce, reportedly, has decided to ask the agencies concerned to demolish those bridges and construct new ones having enough clearance to facilitate the introduction of a circular waterway service. The taskforce felt it necessary to put in place a waterway service to offer some comfort to commuters who have been suffering endlessly from extreme traffic conditions.
Pious though, the decision to demolish so many bridges, allegedly, for having clearance-height below the officially permitted level, raises a few questions. The questions relate to wastage of money, time, sufferings of the people living near the bridges in question and the viability of the proposed waterway service.
The bridges that have been identified for demolition and replacement reportedly belong to the Roads and Highways Department (RHD), Bangladesh Railway (BR), and the Local Government Division (LGD). Interestingly, according to media reports, none from the agencies concerned was present at the meeting where the fate of those bridges was decided.
The demolition issue in question only highlights how the taxpayers' money is wasted in the name of development. The agencies that were involved in the construction of the bridges must explain why did they overlook the clearance requirement. Then again, why did not the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) raise objections when construction work of these bridges had begun?
However, it is unlikely that the people living in localities that the bridges in question connect would allow the authorities to take up demolition work since it is bound to affect seriously their transportation needs for months, maybe, for years. Some of the bridges might have been constructed after years' of persistent lobbying by the local people. So, they surely would oppose tooth and nail any effort to undo their achievement.
Moreover, replacement of the existing bridges with new ones would involve lot of time and money. The way things move under the Bangladesh's bureaucratic system, it might take even five years to get the projects approved and money allocated for the bridge projects. So, the question of providing relief to commuters would be a costly and time-consuming affair. It is more likely that the agencies that constructed the bridges in question would do their best to nullify the 'pious' move of the taskforce.
A dispassionate review of the decision by the taskforce would, however, raise some questions. How could it decide for the introduction of circular waterway when it had on its hand an example how a similar experimentation made by the last BNP government failed utterly?
The immediate past government had introduced the circular waterway service in Dhaka and constructed jetties at a couple of places, including Amin Bazaar. But the service was discontinued long ago for not getting sufficient number of passengers. The jetties now bear the testimony to how whimsical actions of a few in the government lead to wastage of taxpayers' money in a country where authorities fail to provide basic minimum services to its citizens for want of resources.
Who does not know that the present traffic problem in Dhaka city cannot be solved through plans cooked by a few quacks? The problem has grown over the years with the authorities concerned look at different directions. The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has tried to ease the traffic gridlocks by putting in place a few 'innovative' ideas but failed to produce any positive outcome. It has, apparently, given up and become an onlooker of a situation where everybody, the car driver, bus driver, rickshaws and pedestrians have all the freedom to move the way they like.
The traffic problem is so enormous that it has no simple and immediate solution. Experts have suggested lots of solutions, including introduction of elevated expressways, underground rail and flyovers. But none has ever suggested that circular waterway would ease the Dhaka city's nagging traffic problem. Why has then the taskforce chosen a solution that would involve not only lots of money but also subject thousands of people to sufferings?
The decision of the taskforce again highlights the lack of coordination between different government agencies, particularly in the case of development project implementation. The residents of Dhaka city have to undergo sufferings from time to time because of the absence of coordination between different utility service providers.
The minister for shipping and IWT should rather ensure navigability of the rivers encircling the Dhaka city and drive out encroachers. Then the government would not be required to introduce passenger launch service at its own cost. Many private operators would volunteer to open their own services if those are found profitable.
An incredible decision indeed!
