Dilapidation of Dhaka roads brings sufferings to users

Numerous potholes riddle this dilapidated road, from Mirpur 10 to 14, of the capital. The danger rises when rainwater conceals the broken down sections, resulting in accidents for unsuspecting vehicles. The photo was taken yesterday. Photo: Palash Khan

Taxi-cab driver Swapon could not earn anything for the last one week as his lone income source broke down after unexpectedly running over a pothole in the road from Mirpur 10 to 14 in the capital.
The repairs require around Tk 6,000 while Swapon was forced to borrow money to run his family. “My daily earnings of around Tk 500 to Tk 700 totally stopped,” he said.
Swapon said it was not only he who fell victim to the numerous potholes riddling the road for the last two years and the situation worsens after even light showers when rainwater conceals the potholes.
Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Chief Engineer Brig Gen Abul Khayer said they would shortly repair the road.
Negligence of the authorities concerned also resulted in the dilapidation of different adjoining roads in Pallabi, Mirpur and Senpara Porbota.
At the other end of Dhaka, around one kilometre of the Flood Protection Embankment road at Kamalbagh point is a similar trap waiting for the unsuspecting vehicle.
The affected section becomes inundated with rainwater after light showers and this has been going on for years. “Many vehicles avoid the road even after light showers,” said CNG-run three-wheeler driver Anowar.
Repairs and a proper drainage system seem to be a far cry, said one of the commuters, Nazrul Islam.
Syed Aslam Ali, executive engineer of Road Division of Roads and Highways Department, said implementation of the road's Tk 59 crore four lane project would take time for re-tender.
He said they were using brick chips to temporarily make the road usable.
Adjoining Dinnath Sen, Rankin Street, Sutrapur, Dakkhin Sayedabad, Lalbagh's Water Works, and Islambagh's Chadnighat roads face the same degradation.
Lack of maintenance has also left Green Road, South Banasree road, a road near Gulistan intersection and Fulbaria and one near first Buriganga bridge in Postagola in a poor state.
Delays by the city corporations to fix roads right after utility works have also taken a toll on Gulshan Avenue, Shahid Faruk Hossain road, Dayaganj-Tikatuli road and Baunia road.
DNCC Chief Engineer Khayer said Gulshan Avenue now has a brick chip layer and they were waiting for it to become compact before laying a new tarmac.
Dhaka South City Corporation Chief Engineer Jahangir Alam said the roads around Gulistan and Jatrabari were damaged due to an adjoining flyover's construction works.
The shabby roads will come under regular maintenance shortly, he assured.