Only 29 ponds left in Dhaka: Fire Service

There were 100 ponds in the capital Dhaka in 2018, but 71 were filled up in the last five years, leaving only 29, according to the Fire Service and Civil Defence.

In 1985, there were 2,000 ponds in Dhaka. By 2018, around 1,900 public and private ponds, and reservoirs spreading over 70,000 hectares of land in the capital were filled up, according to the Department of Fisheries.

According to a survey report of the Institute of Water Modeling, over 10,000 hectares of wetlands, canals, and lowlands of Dhaka have been lost since 1985.

If this trend continues, by 2031 the number of water bodies and lowlands in Dhaka will fall below 10% of the total area, said Lt Col Tajul Islam Chowdhury, director (operation and maintenance) of Fire Service and Civil Defense, at a dialogue organised at the National Press Club yesterday.

"The number of reservoirs in Dhaka is decreasing. Organisations concerned must take effective measures in this regard as it has become urgent," said Lt Col Tajul Islam Chowdhury at the dialogue on "Reason of Frequent Fire Accidents: What can be done to prevent it", organised by the Urban Development Journalist Forum Bangladesh.

In the current situation, the ponds have become state assets. Landowners cannot be just allowed to fill up their ponds, because they save the lives of people of the surrounding areas, he said.

He said there is a tendency to set up an excessive number of shops in markets without providing proper facilities like electricity connections, which causes fires. Besides, there is a shortage of fire extinguishers in the city markets.

Dhaka South City Corporation CEO Md Mizanur Rahman said, "There is no denying that ponds and reservoirs are being filled up. However, the work of recovering the original channel of Buriganga has already been started.

"Several canal development projects including that in Manda and Jirni canals are being implemented. Dhaka South City is working to protect water bodies and reduce disaster risk."

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Md Tajul Islam said there is no alternative to following all laws properly in building infrastructures to prevent fire accidents. That is why an area should have adequate roads, reservoirs and open spaces.

He said Dhaka city is declining day by day in the livability scale due to over population and inadequate civic amenities.

The minister said, "Along with proper coordination of government agencies, people's awareness is also important to prevent fire accidents. If everyone fulfils their responsibilities, we will be able to prevent fire accidents."

The Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution and other organisations should increase vigilance to ensure the quality of materials, including electrical wires, used in infrastructure construction, said the minister.

He also emphasised on increasing public awareness to prevent fire accidents from cigarette fire. He called for building a social movement to prevent fire accidents.