Environment, forest and climate change affairs adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan on Saturday said that Dhaka would survive if its water bodies were restored and protected.
She made the remarks while addressing a dialogue titled ‘Restoration of Dhaka’s Waterbodies: Challenges and Prospects’ organised by the Urban Development Journalists Forum-Bangladesh at CIRDAP in Dhaka.
The event was also organised to hand over the Best Urban Reporting Award 2025 to the winners.
The adviser said that the government had already taken a number of moves to restore Dhaka’s canals and the moves had been yielding results.
‘This year, despite heavy monsoon rains, waterlogging in the city was less severe than that in the previous years,’ she said.
The adviser said that the government had allocated money from the Climate Trust Fund for the restoration of 40 ponds in Dhaka and taken initiatives to build a blue network comprising canals and rivers.
The adviser emphasised that public awareness and unity were essential in protecting natural resources.
‘When people are united, nothing is impossible. The resistance against stone theft in Bholaganj is a clear example. While we are working on values, we are still lagging in legacy,’ she said.
On Dhaka’s Detailed Area Plan, Rizwana said, ‘There will be no categories of water bodies in the revised DAP; a water body is simply a water body. No filling will be allowed under any circumstances.’
‘We have finalised the Haor Protection Order, which provides guidelines on houseboats and agricultural practices in haor areas,’ she said.
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology’s urban and regional planning professor Musleh Uddin Hasan, in his keynote presentation, said that joint drives by Rajuk and city corporations had begun to recover lands by demolishing illegal structures and freeing canals and rivers from encroachment.
He identified political influence, poor planning and weak institutional coordination as major obstacles.
‘Strong government commitment, political will and international cooperation are vital to protect water bodies. Without these, Dhaka’s environment and urban life will deteriorate further,’ he warned.
The Center for Atmospheric Pollution Studies chairman Ahmad Kamruzzaman Majumder pointed out that RAJUK itself lacked an accurate inventory of ponds in Dhaka.
‘We need a GIS-based mapping of ponds and water bodies, and this information must be made publicly accessible,’ he added.
UNDP programme manager Yugesh Pradhanang said that the issues of wetland were connected with the climate change. ‘Water bodies should be protected to survive in the time of climate change.’
Architect Sujaul Islam Khan, former secretary for environment and urbanisation at the Institute of Architects Bangladesh, criticised the DAP, and said that it promoted unplanned urbanisation.
‘Through DAP, nearly 800 square kilometres around Dhaka is being opened up for development, giving undue advantage to housing companies and encouraging unplanned growth,’ he said.
This year’s Best Urban Reporting Award recognised six journalists across different categories for their contributions to urban development reporting.