Who will save Dhaka’s roads? (Part-II)

Waterlogging hides Dhaka’s potholes like open wounds beneath a sheet of water. Rickshaws plunge, buses lurch and lives are put at risk. Every year, hundreds of crores are spent on the capital’s roads, yet broken asphalt, abandoned trenches and stagnant water return with the rains. Citizens pay taxes and VAT, only to face mud, danger and neglect. Who dug up the roads, who failed to repair them, and who will answer?

Following recent heavy showers, this correspondent toured Mirpur, Agargaon, Shyamoli, Mohammadpur, Rayerbazar, Farmgate, Gulshan, Banani, Mohakhali, Tejgaon, Badda, Shahjadpur, Nurerchala, Narda, Kuril, Khilkhet and the airport area to examine roads across Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC).

The DNCC’s road network spans about 1,560 kilometres. This year, around 460 kilometres need repair or reconstruction: 210 kilometres in the 36 older wards and 250 kilometres in the 18 new wards, or nearly 30 per cent of the network.

In 2024-25, the corporation improved 61 kilometres of roads, 52 kilometres of drains and 16 kilometres of footpaths for about Tk 378 crore. A special programme added 39 kilometres of roads and 48 kilometres of drains for Tk 338 crore.

In 2025-26, it improved 131.70 kilometres of roads, 136.9 kilometres of drains and 48 kilometres of footpaths for about Tk 314 crore. The special programme added roughly 102 kilometres of roads and 96 kilometres of drains. This year, the allocation stands at about Tk 568 crore, with another Tk 570 crore for the special programme.

Major roads include Mirpur Road, Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, Begum Rokeya Sarani, Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Sarani, Airport Road, the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway, Bir Uttam Rafiqul Islam Avenue and Pragati Sarani.
One of the worst stretches is the one-kilometre section of Pragati Sarani from Kuril to the Narda Bazar bus stand. Deep potholes make buses tilt, while drivers swerving to avoid them cause traffic congestion.

On Airport Road, asphalt has peeled away opposite Dhaka Regency and near the Khilkhet bus stand. Potholes also plague the route from Dhanmondi Road 27 to the Mohammadpur bus stand and Bosila Teen Rasta. Most feeder roads in Badda are in poor condition, while the Khilkhet Railgate-Dumni road is unfit for traffic. The stretch from Mirpur 10 to Kachukhet is also badly damaged. The road from Uttara’s Jasimuddin Circle towards the airport continues to sink, while large potholes have opened along the embankment road from Aminbazar in Gabtoli to Babubazar.

A 250-metre lane from Sadek Khan Road, beside Rayerbazar’s Baishakhi playground, to the community centre is riddled with potholes, standing water and exposed iron rods. Other damaged roads include Khilkhet’s Post Office Road, Namapara, Banshtola, Talni in Dumni, Kazibari Mosque Road in Kuril and Barobigha Road in Bhatara, where a large hole forces vehicles into the opposite lane. Cholmaid, West Nurerchala and Pallabi are also in poor condition.