Certainly, Dhaka has long grappled with the lack of a proper waste management infrastructure which has led to issues ranging from frequent flooding during the monsoon season, the rapid mutation of dengue -- a disease which saw record numbers last year -- to the absolute murder of our rivers.
Apropos of this, a recent Daily Star report shed some light on the sorry state of waste management in Bagerhat where the municipality itself has been dumping garbage out in the open, which has led to the environment within the locality becoming inhospitable to the human senses.
What makes matters even worse is that, according to the same report, the Bagerhat municipality undertook a project estimated around Tk8.32 crore which seeks to bolster waste management efforts in the Majhidanga area, even acquiring a five-acre land as well.
Which begs the question: Why is the municipality dumping waste out in the open itself?
In Dhaka, garbage disposal and waste management in the city have historically been sub-par and that city corporations, past and present, have never truly tackled the challenge successfully. While there have been recent developments, such as the Dasherkandi Sewage Treatment Plant, which are paying dividends, waste disposal is still treated as an afterthought in general.
In the past, researchers have pointed out untreated sewage as the primary driver of superbugs. For a nation that touts development almost as an excuse when discussing environmental degradation, it is inexcusable that a fundamental component of development such as waste management is perpetually overlooked.
Tuesday, June 16, 2026
