Reclaiming Geomorphic Integrity in Shaping Dhaka North City Corporation in a Sustainable Way: The Case of Dakshinkhan Thana, Bangladesh

Abstract

The Dhaka City Corporation, including the Dhaka North (DNCC) and Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) has been developing by ignoring the geomorphic controls and causing geoenvironmental deterioration. Comprehending the adverse impacts of such geoenvironmental decline, the present study delved into one of the newly developing urban areas of the DNCC, Dakshinkhan Thana. The objectives of the study were to investigate the reasons and causes of purchasing lands, to explore the consequences of natural hazards and disasters, to evaluate the significance of incorporating geomorphic controls, and to find mitigation measures to develop a sustainable plan for Dakshinkhan Thana. After being established in 2006, the Dakshinkhan Thana has experienced severe geomorphic deterioration due to lack of proper governance by the concerned national and local stakeholders, ignorance, and negligence of the land developers and local communities. Consequently, the study area has become a congested, vegetation-less, unhealthy, and long-enduring waterlogged urban settlement without any urban amenities. Nevertheless, the location, size, and geomorphologic controls of Dakshinkhan Thana were appropriate for developing a green urban area surrounded by water and provided with all the urban amenities. Hence the present study attempted to recommend the ways to incorporate geomorphic controls into the future sustainable plan for Dakshinkhan Thana.