Urban Economy of Bangladesh

As I was travelling on a rickshaw on the 40th victory day of Bangladesh I looked at and admired the architecture and magnificence of the houses on the right of the new Gulshan bridge lake. I could not but feel proud of my country. I tried to imagine what our founding fathers would say if they could see this edifices and whether they would believe that their fellow countrymen had achieved such high standards of living. However as most darkness lies under the candle; as soon as my eyes went to the left of the lake emotions of sadness and shame ruled supreme in my mind which just moments ago was full of pride.
I began to wonder why while some people in our country live in modern day miniature renditions of the palace of Versailles why a larger population was leaving in sub-human conditions without even the most basic of the things that a human being needs to survive such as fresh water and a healthy sanitation.
The answer lies in the fact that every day more and more people flock to this city in search of jobs, education or the attraction of metropolitan life. Furthermore as most of the important government offices are in Dhaka so it’s convenient for people to move into the city. Furthermore as the offices of power are centered in Dhaka and a disproportionate development of infrastructure has taken place around this city so investment has flocked in to this city at an equally disproportional investment and hence economic growth has taken place around this city. This has meant more and more people have flocked to this city. As the formal sector could not absorb them they entered the informal sector as maids (kajer buas), rickshaw pullers, vegetable vendors and hawkers. Those who get in rarely if ever gets out and joins the formal sector.
One of the manifestations of the dichotomy of the informal sector and formal sector can be seen in the housing that the occupants of the sectors occupy. While those in the formal sector have firms competing to satisfy their