DHAKA AS THE CAPITAL OF BANGLADESH (SINCE 1971)

After the independence of Bangladesh on December 16, 1971, the city’s population rose suddenly to about 15,00,000 and in 1974 it was about 16,100,000 (Census of Bangladesh, 1974). The urbanization activities have been achieving tremendous growth for the needs of the newly independent country’s capital. The city began to expand in all directions including over the low-lying areas on the eastern side, such as in Jurain, Goran, Badda, Khilgaon, Rampura, and in the western side, areas like Kamrangirchar, Shyamoli, Western Mohammadpur, Kallyanpur through the earth filling (Chowdhury, 1991). In 1995, The new Master Plan for Dhaka was prepared for the further development of Dhaka City. As very rapid urban growth along with the fast increase in population and structural development started to take place in the city, this new structure plan was a must. The population had leapt to 3 million within one decade of the independence of the country and the city covered an area of about 70 sq. km. in 1980. The swamps and wetlands of the city started to disappear fast. New areas of residential, administrational, business and commercial importance began to develop. At the same time, numerous slums and unplanned low-income residential areas or squatters also grew up in different areas of the city. Keeping pace with the magnitudes of these urban growth, the new urbanized areas were being encroached in the low-lying areas in the city and even in some of the adjacent distant areas.