Good intention, poor execution
We can understand the intention of the DSCC mayor to address the horrendous traffic situation that prevails in the capital city. However, the purpose of reducing traffic congestion is to benefit the people of Dhaka. But instead, the sudden banning of rickshaws plying three important roads has irked thousands of commuters and rickshaw-pullers. For rickshaw-pullers, it is a matter of their daily bread, and for commuters, it is a matter of major inconvenience being left without a viable alternative.
One would like to ask: what alternative arrangements have the authorities made for those who use rickshaws to get to work or to take their children to school? The fact that thousands of rickshaw-pullers have been gathering under the banner of "Greater Dhaka North and South City Corporation Rickshaw and Van Owner Oikya Parishad" and agitating on these routes—putting commuters in distress and causing higher-than-usual traffic gridlock—drives home the point that knee-jerk reactions do not solve problems but cause more pain for city residents.
The city authorities should have made alternative plans, like the buses we keep hearing about that are supposed to join the BRTC fleet, before going for such a sudden measure. And what of the people who drive rickshaws and vans? What of their livelihoods and how will they feed their families and support their dependents? It is true that creating blockades and making people suffer is no answer. Neither is putting into effect an order that may have to be rescinded sooner or later because the essential details had not been thought through before taking a decision which has caused much public suffering.
Comments