The Detailed Area Plan (DAP) proposed and prepared by RAJUK in December 2021 the summary of which has been finally approved by Prime Minister on 6th July 2022. The 20-year master plan was approved with the aim to make Dhaka a livable and modern mega city by the year 2035.
The government on 23 August 2022 published the gazette notification on the 20-year (2016-2035) master plan. The total area of DAP is 1528 sq kilometers. There is a clear point in the terms of Reference for preparation of the DAP, which mentions demarcating rivers, canals, water bodies based on surveys done during the British and Pakistani eras and mouja maps.
The draft DAP has ignored this point, and proposed a modification in the classification of flood flow zones. Upon implementation of such plans, the city will risk losing 70 percent of its water bodies, and the proportion of flood flow zones will be reduced to 17 percent.
The draft DAP proposes a community parking system, but does not specify where and how they will arrange the land for such a parking system. In the new DAP, only five percent area has been designated as purely residential, while the rest will be a mix of residential and commercial.
Despite over 4.0 million people living in slums, the DAP lays no emphasis on low-cost housing facilities for low-income and poor people. The DAP also proposes the area-based schooling system and it is a good move to reduce traffic congestion in the city.
The proposal to build 627 quality schools, 285 colleges, and 287 hospitals is a very good initiation but its main challenge is getting land for its implementation. The environment of the city is deteriorating fast due to rampant pollution, encroachment, denudation of green cover, etc. Something must be done to improve the situation. The detailed area plan should not otherwise be violated with disdain.
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