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Dhaka: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Dhaka
In 1610, the Mughal governor Islam Khan I renamed the settlement Dhaka to Jahangirnagar, meaning The City of Jahangir, in honor of the reigning emperor. This decision transformed a modest trading post into the capital of the Bengal Subah, a province that stretched across modern-day Bangladesh and eastern India. The city quickly became the economic engine of the Mughal Empire, renowned for its production of muslin, a fabric so fine it was said to be woven from the morning dew. Merchants from across Eurasia flocked to the city, drawn by the promise of wealth and the vibrant trade networks that connected Bengal to the world. The city was a cosmopolitan hub, home to Armenians, Jews, Greeks, and Persians, each contributing to the rich tapestry of life in the early modern city. The Mughals decorated the city with well-laid gardens, tombs, mosques, palaces, and forts, creating a landscape that was both functional and aesthetically pleasing. The city was once called the Venice of the East, a testament to its prosperity and the intricate network of rivers that crisscrossed the urban landscape. The Mughal city was named Jahangirnagar in honor of the erstwhile ruling emperor Jahangir, and the city's wealthy Mughal elite included princes and the sons of Mughal emperors. The pre-colonial city's glory peaked in the 17th and 18th centuries, when it was home to merchants from across Eurasia. The Port of Dhaka was a major trading hub for both riverine and maritime commerce. The Mughals decorated the city with well-laid gardens, tombs, mosques, palaces, and forts. The city was once called the Venice of the East.
The Decline and Rebirth
The decline of Dhaka began in the 18th century, as the Mughal Empire crumbled and the British East India Company rose to power. The city's fortunes received a boost with connections to the mercantile networks of the British Empire, but the British neglected Dhaka's industrial and urban development until the late 19th century. Income from the pre-colonial, proto-industrialized textile industry dried up, and Bengali weavers went out of business after the imposition of a 75% tax on the export of cotton from Bengal. The rapid growth of the colonial capital Calcutta contributed to the decline in Dhaka's population and economy in the early 1800s. In 1824, an Anglican bishop described Dhaka as a City of magnificent ruins. Despite this, the city still had an estimated 90,000 houses and huts and a population of around 300,000 by the 1840s. The city's fortunes changed in the early 20th century, when British neglect of Dhaka's urban development was overturned with the first partition of Bengal in 1905. The city became the seat of government for Eastern Bengal and Assam, with a jurisdiction covering most of modern-day Bangladesh and all of what is now Northeast India. The partition was the brainchild of Lord Curzon, who finally acted on British ideas for partitioning Bengal to improve administration, education, and business. Dhaka became the seat of the Eastern Bengal and Assam Legislative Council. While Dhaka was the main capital throughout the year, Shillong acted as the summer retreat of the administration. Lieutenant Governors were in charge of the province. They resided in Dhaka. The Lt Governors included Sir Bampfylde Fuller (1905, 1906), Sir Lancelot Hare (1906, 1911), and Sir Charles Stuart Bayley (1911, 1912). Their legacy lives on in the names of three major thoroughfares in modern Dhaka, including Hare Road, Bayley Road, and Fuller Road. The period saw the construction of stately buildings, including the High Court and Curzon Hall. The city was home to diverse groups of people, including Armenians, Jews, Anglo-Indians and Hindus. The Hindus included both Marwaris and Bengali Hindus, with a plurality emerging by 1941 and engaged in professions like teaching, medicine, law, and business. On the political front, partition allowed Dhaka to project itself as the standard-bearer of Muslim communities in British India, as opposed to the heavily Hindu-dominated city of Calcutta. In 1906, the All India Muslim League was founded in the city during a conference on liberal education hosted by the Nawab of Dhaka and the Aga Khan III. The Muslim population in Dhaka and eastern Bengal generally favored partition in the hopes of getting better jobs and educational opportunities. Many Bengalis, however, opposed the bifurcation of the ethnolinguistic region. The partition was annulled by an announcement from King George V during the Delhi Durbar in 1911. The British decided to reunite Bengal while the capital of India was shifted to New Delhi from Calcutta. As a splendid compensation for the annulment of partition, the British gave the city a newly formed university in the 1920s. The University of Dhaka was initially modelled on the residential style of the University of Oxford. It became known as the Oxford of the East because of its residential character. Like Oxford, students in Dhaka were affiliated with their halls of residence instead of their academic departments (this system was dropped after 1947 and students are now affiliated with academic departments). The university's faculty included scientist Satyendra Nath Bose (who is the namesake of the Higgs boson); linguist Muhammad Shahidullah, Sir A F Rahman (the first Bengali vice-chancellor of the university); and historian R. C. Majumdar. The university was established in 1921 by the Imperial Legislative Council. It started with three faculties and 12 departments, covering the subjects of Sanskrit, Bengali, English, liberal arts, history, Arabic, Islamic Studies, Persian, Urdu, philosophy, economics, politics, physics, chemistry, mathematics, and law. The East Bengal Cinematograph Company produced the first full-length silent movies in Dhaka during the 1920s, including Sukumari and The Last Kiss. DEVCO, a subsidiary of the Occtavian Steel Company, began widescale power distribution in 1930. The Tejgaon Airport was constructed during World War II as a base for Allied Forces. The Dhaka Medical College was established in 1946. At the time of the partition of India, many rich Hindu families relocated to West Bengal. Their properties were seized by the state under laws that eventually became known as the Vested Property Act.
When was Dhaka renamed Jahangirnagar by the Mughal governor Islam Khan I?
The Mughal governor Islam Khan I renamed the settlement Dhaka to Jahangirnagar in 1610. This decision transformed a modest trading post into the capital of the Bengal Subah, a province that stretched across modern-day Bangladesh and eastern India.
What year was the University of Dhaka established and what was its initial model?
The University of Dhaka was established in 1921 by the Imperial Legislative Council. It was initially modelled on the residential style of the University of Oxford and became known as the Oxford of the East because of its residential character.
On which date did the Pakistan Eastern Command surrender to end the war in Dhaka?
The Pakistan Eastern Command surrendered to Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora at the Ramna Race Course in Dhaka on the 16th of December 1971. This event marked the end of the war and the birth of Bangladesh.
When was the first phase of the Dhaka Metro Rail inaugurated and what route does it cover?
The first phase of the Dhaka Metro Rail from Uttara to Agargaon was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the 28th of December 2022. This system commenced commercial operations on that date and is part of a planned six-line network.
Which year did the Dhaka Stock Exchange open and what was its market capitalization in 2021?
The Dhaka Stock Exchange was opened on the 28th of April 1954. It had a market capitalization of BDT 5,136,979.000 million in 2021.
The development of the real city began after the partition of India. After partition, Dhaka became known as the second capital of Pakistan. This was formalized in 1962 when Ayub Khan declared the city as the legislative capital under the 1962 constitution. New neighborhoods began to spring up in formerly barren and agrarian areas. These included Dhanmondi (rice granary), Katabon (thorn forest), Kathalbagan (jackfruit garden), Kalabagan (banana garden), Segunbagicha (teak garden) and Gulshan (flower garden). Living standards rapidly improved from the pre-partition standards. The economy began to industrialize. On the outskirts of the city, the world's largest jute mill was built. The mill produced jute goods which were in high demand during the Korean War. People began building duplex houses. In 1961, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip witnessed the improved living standards of Dhaka's residents. The Intercontinental hotel, designed by William B. Tabler, was opened in 1966. Estonian-American architect Louis I. Kahn was enlisted to design the Dhaka Assembly, which was originally intended to be the federal parliament of Pakistan and later became independent Bangladesh's parliament. The East Pakistan Helicopter Service connected the city to regional towns. The Dhaka Stock Exchange was opened on the 28th of April 1954. The first local airline Orient Airways began flights between Dhaka and Karachi on the 6th of June 1954. The Dhaka Improvement Trust was established in 1956 to coordinate the city's development. The first master plan for the city was drawn up in 1959. The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization established a medical research centre (now called ICDDR,B) in the city in 1960. The early period of political turbulence was seen between 1947 and 1952, particularly the Bengali language movement. From the mid-1960s, the Awami League's 6-point autonomy demands began giving rise to pro-independence aspirations across East Pakistan. In 1969, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was released from prison amid a mass upsurge which led to the resignation of Ayub Khan in 1970. The city had an influential press with prominent newspapers like the Pakistan Observer, Ittefaq, Forum, and the Weekly Holiday. During the political and constitutional crisis in 1971, the military junta led by Yahya Khan refused to transfer power to the newly elected National Assembly, causing mass riots, civil disobedience, and a movement for self-determination. On the 7th of March 1971, Awami League leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman addressed a massive public gathering at the Ramna Race Course Maidan in Dhaka, in which he warned of an independence struggle. Subsequently, East Pakistan came under a non-co-operation movement against the Pakistani state. On Pakistan's Republic Day (the 23rd of March 1971), Bangladeshi flags were hoisted throughout Dhaka in a show of resistance. On the 25th of March 1971, the Pakistan Army launched military operations under Operation Searchlight against the population of East Pakistan. Dhaka bore the brunt of the army's atrocities, witnessing a genocide and a campaign of wide-scale repression, with the arrest, torture, and murder of the city's civilians, students, intelligentsia, political activists and religious minorities. The army faced mutinies from the East Pakistan Rifles and the Bengali police. Large parts of the city were burnt and destroyed, including Hindu neighborhoods. Much of the city's population was either displaced or forced to flee to the countryside. Dhaka was struck with numerous air raids by the Indian Air Force in December. The Pakistan Eastern Command surrendered to Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora at the Ramna Race Course in Dhaka on the 16th of December 1971. After independence, Dhaka's population grew from several hundred thousand to several million in five decades. Dhaka was declared the national capital by the Constituent Assembly of Bangladesh in 1972. The post-independence period witnessed rapid growth as Dhaka attracted migrant workers from across rural Bangladesh. 60% of population growth has been due to rural migration. The city endured socialist unrest in the early 1970s, followed by a few years of martial law. The stock exchange and free market were restored in the late 1970s. In the 1980s, Dhaka saw the inauguration of the National Parliament House (which won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture), a new international airport and the Bangladesh National Museum. Bangladesh pioneered the formation of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and hosted its first summit in Dhaka in 1985. A mass uprising in 1990 led to the return of parliamentary democracy. Dhaka hosted a trilateral summit between India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh in 1998; the summit of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation in 1999 and conferences of the Commonwealth, SAARC, the OIC and United Nations agencies during various years. In the 1990s and 2000s, Dhaka experienced improved economic growth and the emergence of affluent business districts and satellite towns. Between 1990 and 2005, the city's population doubled from 6 million to 12 million. There has been increased foreign investment in the city, particularly in the financial and textile manufacturing sectors. Between 2008 and 2011, the government of Bangladesh organized three years of celebrations to mark 400 years since Dhaka's founding as an early modern city. But frequent hartals by political parties have greatly hampered the city's economy. The hartal rate has declined since 2014. In some years, the city experienced a widespread flash flood during the monsoon. Dhaka is one of the fastest-growing megacities in the world. It is predicted to be one of the world's largest cities by 2025, along with Tokyo, Mexico City, Shanghai, Beijing and New York City. Most of its population are rural migrants, including climate refugees. Congestion is one of the most prominent features of modern Dhaka. In 2014, it was reported that only 7% of the city was covered by roads. The first phase of Dhaka Metro Rail from Uttara to Agargaon was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the 28th of December 2022. However, nearly one third of Dhaka's population lives in slums, as of 2016. The city's main river, the Buriganga River, has become one of the most polluted rivers in the country.
The Urban Labyrinth
Dhaka is located in central Bangladesh at 23.8103° N 90.4125° E, on the eastern banks of the Buriganga River. The city lies on the lower reaches of the Ganges Delta and covers a total area of 306.38 square kilometers. Tropical vegetation and moist soils characterize the land, which is flat and close to sea level. This leaves Dhaka susceptible to flooding during the monsoon seasons owing to heavy rainfall and cyclones. Due to its location on the lowland plain of the Ganges Delta, the city is fringed by extensive mangroves and tidal flat ecosystems. Dhaka District is bounded by the districts of Gazipur, Tangail, Munshiganj, Rajbari, Narayanganj, and Manikganj. The city of Dhaka is built over a network of rivers. The city's life is strongly intertwined with the rivers, as they are used for multiple purposes, including transportation. Except Old Dhaka, which is an old bazaar-style neighborhood, the layout of the city follows a grid pattern with organic development influenced by traditional South Asian as well as Middle Eastern and Western patterns. Growth of the city is largely unplanned and is focused on the northern regions and around the city centre, where many of the more affluent neighborhoods may be found. Most of the construction in the city consists of concrete high-rise buildings. Middle-class and upper-class housing, along with commercial and industrial areas, occupy most of the city. However, nearly one third of Dhaka's population lives in slums, as of 2016. Dhaka does not have a well-defined central business district. Old Dhaka is the historic commercial centre, but most development has moved to the north. In 1985, the area around Motijheel was considered the modern CBD, while by 2005 Gulshan was considered the newest part of the CBD. Many Bangladeshi government institutions can be found in Motijheel, Segunbagicha, Tejgaon, Karwan Bazar, and Sher-e-Bangla Nagar. Much activity is centred around a few large roads, where road laws are rarely obeyed and street vendors and beggars are frequently encountered. For much of recent history, Dhaka was characterized by roadside markets and small shops that sold a wide variety of goods. Recent years have seen the widespread construction of shopping malls. Three of the largest shopping malls in the city and the wider South Asian region are the Jamuna Future Park, Centrepoint and Bashundhara City. Under the Köppen climate classification, Dhaka has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw). The city has a distinct monsoonal season, with an annual average temperature of 26°C and monthly means varying between 19°C in January and 31°C in May. Approximately 87% of the average annual rainfall of 2,100 millimeters occurs between May and October. According to the World Air Quality Report 2024, Dhaka is one of the world's 20 most polluted cities. There are many parks within Dhaka City, including Ramna Park, Suhrawardy Udyan, Shishu Park, National Botanical Garden, Baldha Garden, Chandrima Uddan, Gulshan Park and Dhaka Zoo. Almost 10% of the city's area consists of water, with 676 ponds and 43 canals. The Buriganga River flows past the southwest outskirts of Dhaka. Its average depth is 10 meters and its maximum depth is 20 meters. It ranks among the most polluted rivers in the country. The city is surrounded by six interconnected river systems, the Buriganga and Dhaleshwari in the southwest, Turag and Tongi Khal in the north, and Balu and Shitalakshya in the east, which support trade, transport, and stormwater drainage. However, the current quality of the river network is very poor, due to the discharge of untreated wastewater from households and industries. There are several lakes within the city, such as Crescent Lake, Dhanmondi Lake, Baridhara-Gulshan Lake, Banani Lake, Uttara Lake, Hatirjheel-Begunbari Lake, and Ramna Lake. Increasing air and water pollution affects public health and quality of life in the city. The air pollution is caused for example by vehicle traffic and congestion. Also, due to the unregulated manufacturing of bricks and other causes, Dhaka has very high levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) air pollution. Water pollution is caused by the discharge of municipal wastewater from households and industry without treatment. As of 2011 only 20% of the city is connected to a sewer system, whereas 80% is not connected. As a result, the rivers in Dhaka have severe pathogen pollution, as indicated by the fecal coliform count that is several hundred times higher than the recommended national and international standards of less than 200 cfu per litre for bathing and swimming. Chemical surveys in the rivers near Dhaka show extremely high organic pollution loading, high ammonia, and very low dissolved oxygen levels, which are close to zero in the dry season. In addition to the organic and pathogen pollution load from the 1.2 million m3 of untreated sewage, the rivers receive about 60,000 m3 of industrial effluent every day from nine major industrial clusters (as of 2021). There are an estimated 500, 700 wet processing and dyeing textile factories releasing a range of chemicals including salts, dyes and bleaches, and 155 tanneries discharging heavy metals, including chromium. Four of the rivers surrounding Dhaka, Buriganga, Sitalakhya, Balu and Turag, are so polluted that they have been declared as ecologically critical areas in 2009 by the Department of Environment. This makes them unsuitable for any human use. Nevertheless, people living in low-income and slum areas still have a lot of direct contact with river water, exposing them to health risks. They use river water for dishwashing, laundry, cleaning fish and vegetables, and personal washing, washing and dyeing denim, washing fish baskets or plastic sheets, collecting plastic waste and fishing. As a result, many of the immediate environmental burdens of river pollution are borne by these low-income residents. Bodies of water and wetlands around Dhaka face destruction as they are being filled to construct multi-storied buildings and other real estate developments. Coupled with pollution, such erosion of natural habitats threatens to destroy much of the regional biodiversity.
The Pulse of the City
As the capital of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Dhaka is home to numerous state and diplomatic institutions. The Bangabhaban is the official residence and workplace of the President of Bangladesh, who is the ceremonial head of state under the constitution. The National Parliament House is located in the modernist capital complex designed by Louis Kahn in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, while the Ganabhaban, known for being former prime minister Sheikh Hasina's official residence, is situated on the north side. The Prime Minister's Office is located in Tejgaon. Most ministries of the Government of Bangladesh are housed in the Bangladesh Secretariat. The Supreme Court, the Dhaka High Court and the Foreign Ministry are located in the Segunbagicha-Shahbagh area. The Defence Ministry and the Ministry of Planning are located in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar. The Armed Forces Division of the government of Bangladesh and the army, navy and air force HQs of the Bangladesh Armed Forces are located in Dhaka Cantonment. Several important installations of the Bangladesh Army are also situated in Dhaka and Mirpur Cantonments. The Bangladesh Navy's principal administrative and logistics base, BNS Haji Mohshin, is located in Dhaka. The Bangladesh Air Force maintains the BAF Bangabandhu Air Base and BAF Khademul Bashar Air Base in Dhaka. Dhaka hosts 54 resident embassies and high commissions and numerous international organizations. Most diplomatic missions are located in the Gulshan and Baridhara areas of the city. The Agargaon area near Parliament is home to the country offices of the United Nations, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and the Islamic Development Bank. The municipality of Dhaka was founded on the 1st of August 1864 and upgraded to Metropolitan status in 1978. In 1983, the Dhaka City Corporation was created as a self-governing entity to govern Dhaka. Under a new act in 1993, an election was held in 1994 for the first elected Mayor of Dhaka. The Dhaka City Corporation ran the affairs of the city until November 2011. In 2011, Dhaka City Corporation was split into two separate corporations , Dhaka North City Corporation and Dhaka South City Corporation to ensure better civic facilities. These two corporations are headed by two mayors, who are elected by direct vote of the citizen for 5 years. The area within city corporations was divided into several wards, each having an elected commissioner. In total, the city has 130 wards and 725 mohallas. RAJUK is responsible for coordinating urban development in the Greater Dhaka area. DMP is responsible for maintaining law and order within the metro area. It was established in 1976. DMP has 56 police stations as administrative units. Unlike other megacities worldwide, Dhaka is serviced by over two dozen government organizations under different ministries. Lack of coordination among them and centralization of all powers by the Government of Bangladesh keeps the development and maintenance of the city in a chaotic situation. As the most densely industrialized region of the country, the Greater Dhaka Area accounts for 35% of Bangladesh's economy. The Globalization and World Cities Research Network ranks Dhaka as a gamma+ global city, in other words, one that is instrumental in linking their region into the world economy. Major industrial areas are Tejgaon, Shyampur and Hazaribagh. The city has a growing middle class, driving the market for modern consumer and luxury goods. Shopping malls serve as vital elements in the city's economy. The city has historically attracted numerous migrant workers. Hawkers, peddlers, small shops, rickshaw transport, roadside vendors and stalls employ a large segment of the population , rickshaw drivers alone number as many as 400,000. Half the workforce is employed in household and unorganized labour, while about 800,000 work in the textile industry. The unemployment rate in Dhaka was 23% in 2013. Almost all large local conglomerates have their corporate offices located in Dhaka. Microcredit also began here and the offices of the Nobel Prize-winning Grameen Bank and BRAC (the largest non-governmental development organization in the world) are based in Dhaka. Urban developments have sparked a widespread construction boom; new high-rise buildings and skyscrapers have changed the city's landscape. Growth has been especially strong in the finance, banking, manufacturing, telecommunications, and service sectors, while tourism, hotels, and restaurants continue as important elements of the Dhaka economy. Dhaka has rising traffic congestion and inadequate infrastructure; the national government has recently implemented a policy for rapid urbanization of surrounding areas and beyond by the introduction of a ten-year relief on income tax for new construction of facilities and buildings outside Dhaka. The Dhaka metropolitan area boasts several central business districts (CBDs). In the southern part of the city, the riverfront of Old Dhaka is home to many small businesses, factories, and trading companies. Near Old Dhaka lies Motijheel, which is the biggest CBD in Bangladesh. The Motijheel area developed in the 1960s. Motijheel is home to the Bangladesh Bank, the nation's central bank; as well as the headquarters of the largest state-owned banks, including Janata Bank, Pubali Bank, Sonali Bank and Rupali Bank. By the 1990s, the affluent residential neighborhoods of Gulshan, Banani and Uttara in the northern part of the city became a major business centre and now hosts many international companies operating in Bangladesh. The Purbachal New Town Project is planned as the city's future CBD. The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) had a market capitalization of BDT 5,136,979.000 million in 2021. Some of the largest companies listed on the DSE include: Grameenphone BEXIMCO BSRM Titas Gas Summit Group The City Bank BRAC Bank IDLC Finance Limited Square Pharmaceuticals Eastern Bank Limited Orion Group. Major trade associations based in the city include: Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce & Industries (FBCCI) Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (NOAB) Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB). The city, in combination with localities forming the wider metropolitan area, is home to over 22 million people. The population is growing by an estimated 3.3% per year, one of the highest rates among Asian cities. The continuing growth reflects ongoing migration from rural areas to the Dhaka urban region, which accounted for 60% of the city's growth in the 1960s and 1970s. More recently, the city's population has also grown with the expansion of city boundaries, a process that added more than a million people to the city in the 1980s. According to the Far Eastern Economic Review, Dhaka will be home to 25 million people by the end of 2025. This rapid population growth makes it difficult for the city government to provide the necessary infrastructure in a timely manner, e.g. for water supply, electricity and waste management. About 30% of Dhaka's population lives in slums (or unplanned urban settlements), as of 2016. Estimates from 2011 and 2015 found that there are about 3 to 5 thousand slums and squatter settlements scattered all over the city. It is often the new arrivals, people migrating from rural areas, who end up living in slums. People only have very limited access to water, sanitation and other services in those slum areas. Slums may be found in the outskirts and in less-visible areas such as alleyways. As of 2021, the largest slum is in Kamrangirchar, where about 600,000 people live in slum conditions. The city population is composed of people from virtually every region of Bangladesh. The long-standing inhabitants of the old city are known as Dhakaiya and have a distinctive Bengali dialect and culture. Dhaka is also home to a large number of Bihari refugees, who are descendants of migrant Muslims from eastern India during 1947 and settled down in East Pakistan. The correct population of Biharis living in the city is ambiguous, but it is estimated that there are at least 300,000 Urdu-speakers in all of Bangladesh, mostly residing in old Dhaka and in refugee camps in Dhaka, although official figures estimate only 40,000. Between 15,000 and 20,000 of the Rohingya, Santal, Khasi, Garo, Chakma and Mandi tribal peoples reside in the city. Most residents of Dhaka speak Bengali, the national language. Other than Standard Bengali which is used in business and education, most prominent Bengali dialects spoken in the city include an Urban East Bengal Colloquial dialect, and Dhakaiya Kutti spoken in Old Dhaka. Once a hallmark of heritage, Old Dhaka's distinct dialects are slowly fading away. English is spoken by a large segment of the population, especially for business purposes. The city has both Bengali and English newspapers. Urdu, including Dhakaiya Urdu, is spoken by members of several non-Bengali communities, including the Biharis. The literacy rate in Dhaka is also increasing quickly. It was estimated at 69.2% in 2001. The literacy rate had gone up to 74.6% by 2011 which is significantly higher than the national average of 72%. Islam is the dominant religion of the city, with 19.3 million of the city's population being Muslim, and a majority belonging to the Sunni sect. There is also a small Shia sect, and an Ahmadiyya community. Hinduism is the second-largest religion numbering around 1.47 million adherents. Smaller segments represent 1% and practise Christianity and Buddhism. In the city proper, over 8.5 million of the 8.9 million residents are Muslims, while 320,000 are Hindu and nearly 50,000 Christian.
The Rhythms of Life
Motorcycles comprised half of Dhaka's registered vehicles in 2023, while car ownership rate is only six per cent. One of the world's least motorized cities, the three-wheeled cycle rickshaw is the most popular and ubiquitous mode of transport, which accounted for 54 per cent of vehicle trips in 2011. Dhaka is among the most congested cities in the world, and traffic was estimated to cost the local economy billion per year in 2020. The average speed of a car travelling in the city is less than 10 kilometers per hour. Auto rickshaws powered by compressed natural gas, often referred to by locals as CNGs, are also a popular mode of transport. The city is connected to other parts of the country through highway and railway links. Five of Bangladesh's eight major national highways start from the city: N1, N2, N3, N5 and N8. Dhaka is also directly connected to the two longest routes of the Asian Highway Network: AH1 and AH2, as well as to the AH41 route. Highway links to the Indian cities of Kolkata, Agartala, Guwahati and Shillong have been established by the BRTC and private bus companies, which also run regular international bus services to those cities from Dhaka. The Dhaka Elevated Expressway, the first of its kind in the country, improves connectivity between the northern part of the city and the central, southern, and south-eastern parts. An extension, the Dhaka, Ashulia Elevated Expressway, is expected to open in 2026. Cycle rickshaws and CNG auto-rickshaws are the main modes of transport within the metro area, with more than 1.5 million rickshaws running each day: the highest number in any city in the world. However, only around 220 thousand rickshaws are licensed by the city government. Over 15,000 legally registered CNGs serve passengers in Dhaka, with thousands more operating illegally. Since 2016, Uber and Pathao have dominated the ride-sharing market in Dhaka, which offer both car and motorcycle services. Ride-sharing services have led to a decline in the use of CNG auto-rickshaws, although Uber has expanded its services to include CNG auto-rickshaws in 2021. Buses carried about 1.9 million passengers per day in 2007. Public buses in Dhaka are primarily operated by numerous private companies, with a minority run by the state-owned Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC). BRTC buses are red, based initially on the Routemaster buses of London. There are three inter-district bus terminals in Dhaka, which are located in the city's Mohakhali, Saidabad, and Gabtoli areas. It is now planned to move three inter-district bus terminals outside the town. Highway links to the Indian cities of Kolkata, Agartala, Guwahati and Shillong have been established by the BRTC and private bus companies, which also run regular international bus services to those cities from Dhaka. Set to open in December 2024, the Dhaka Bus Rapid Transit system is expected to reduce travel time from Dhaka to the satellite town of Gazipur from as long as four hours to just 35, 40 minutes. The Sadarghat River Port on the banks of the Buriganga River serves for the transport of goods and passengers upriver and to other ports in Bangladesh. Inter-city and inter-district motor vessels and passenger ferry services are used by many people to travel riverine regions of the country from the city. Water bus services are available on the Buriganga River and Hatirjheel and Gulshan lakes, providing connectivity via two routes, Tejgaon, Gulshan and Tejgaon, Rampura. Kamalapur railway station, situated on the northeast side of Motijheel, is the largest and busiest of the city's railway stations. It was designed by American architect Robert Boughey and was completed in 1969. The state-owned Bangladesh Railway provides suburban and national services, with regular express train services connecting Dhaka with other major urban areas, such as Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Rangpur. The Maitree Express and the Mitali Express provides connections from Dhaka to West Bengal in India. Dhaka Metro Rail is a mass rapid transit system serving the city. It is a part of the 20-year-long Strategic Transport Plan (STP) outlined by the Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA). The first phase of Dhaka Metro's MRT Line 6 was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and commenced commercial operations on the 28th of December 2022. The metro network is planned to contain six lines. Before the opening of the Dhaka Metro Rail, Dhaka was the biggest city in the world without a mass rapid transit system. Unrelated to the metro, there is also a proposal to build a subway and an orbital railway system. Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (formerly Zia International Airport), located north of Dhaka city centre, is the largest and busiest international airport in the country. Although built with an annual passenger-handling capacity of 8 million, it handled more than 11 million passengers in 2023. The average aircraft movement per day is around 330 flights. It is the hub of most Bangladeshi airlines. Domestic service flies to Chittagong, Sylhet, Rajshahi, Cox's Bazar, Jessore, Barisal, and Saidpur (Rangpur), and international services fly to major cities in Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The airport's capacity is expected to more than double to 20 million once the modern third terminal opens fully in October 2024. According to the project design, the third terminal will have 12 boarding bridges and 16 conveyor belts. The terminal will have 115 check-in counters and 128 immigration desks. Water management in Dhaka faces numerous challenges such as flooding, poor service quality, groundwater depletion, inadequate sanitation, polluted river water, unplanned urban development, and the existence of large slums. The Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Dhaka WASA) is responsible for providing drinking water, sewerage, and storm-water drainage services to the city. The work of Dhaka WASA is funded by the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development, and Cooperatives. 87% of the city's growing water demand is sourced from groundwater (as of 2021). This is because the extreme contamination of rivers and lakes makes surface water
The Transport Paradox
treatment economically and technologically unfeasible. While around 20% of the daily demand of 2.4 billion litres of water is met with surface water from five treatment plants, the groundwater table is falling at a rate of two to three metres per year. The Bangladesh Urban Informal Settlements Survey 2016 included a representative sample of 588 households across small, medium and large slums in Dhaka. It showed that 68% of the households accessed piped water through a shared connection within the slum compound. The poorest households shared a waterpoint with 43 other households on average compared to 23 sharers among the richest households. In terms of sanitation, only 8% of the slum households had access to a flush toilet connected to a septic tank, while 78% used improved pit latrines and the remaining 10% depended on hanging latrines. The sewage system is inadequate, with 70 per cent of the two million cubic metres of sewage produced daily being discharged into rivers, according to wastewater management experts. Due to improper maintenance and the age of the system, the majority of the sewerage network is out of operation. Most buildings handle their own sewage by constructing soak pits or septic tanks, often connected to storm drains. Consequently, 80 per cent of faecal sludge ends up in rivers, according to experts. Dhaka is served by two sewage treatment plants. The Pagla Sewerage Treatment Plant (PSTP) in Narayanganj District has a capacity of 120 megalitres per day but can only utilise one-third of its capacity, handling just 10 per cent of the city's waste. The Dasherkandi Sewerage Treatment Plant, opened in 2023, is South Asia's largest, with a capacity to treat 500 megalitres, or 20, 25% of the city's 2,000 megalitres of sewage generated daily. However, it is also hampered by a lack of sewage connections. As of 2023, the Bangladesh Government and the Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) are implementing an ambitious plan, called Dhaka Sewerage Master Plan, to treat most of the residential and industrial wastewater through the construction of several sewage treatment plants. The Bangladesh Government is planning to install over 12 large new sewage treatment plants over the next 20 years.