To Whom It May Concern,
I live in South Banasree project, situated in Khilgaon, Dhaka, Bangladesh. I run the office of Dhaka Opinion Magazine, a global opinion magazine, from my rented residential house in the project. Notably, I sometimes go to Hatirjheel Lake to find a breathing/stress-relieving/relaxed space because there is a lack of a park or a playground in the project area, rendered as a planned residential area. But I am neither alone is suffering from the lack of such facilities nor does South Banasree alone lacks such facilities in Dhaka city. Many are facing the lack of such facilities since there is a limited number of parks and playgrounds in Dhaka city, the largest city of Bangladesh which is one of the most populated countries in the world.
Notably, parks and playgrounds are very important for the wellbeing of all including children and adults in Dhaka city. Parks and playgrounds provide a range of scope including sports and gatherings which in turn help to reduce stress and improve physical, social and mental wellbeing of all and social and cognitive skills of children and adolescents. It is pertinent to say that Dhaka had many parks and playgrounds that do not exist at present. Some efforts were made by the concerned authorities to rescue but these are scant. The concerned city corporations are less emphatic on making new parks and playgrounds in residential areas, though they repeatedly promise to make so. There is also a lack of emphasis on providing such spaces by residential projects in the city.
It is desired that more parks and playgrounds are provided in different areas of Dhaka city for the beneficial physical, social, mental and other impacts of all. In this respect, Dhaka North City Corporation and Dhaka South City Corporation need to play the leading roles. Both city corporations need to put more emphasis on providing new parks and playgrounds at the community level. Moreover, residential projects in the city need to be made mandatory for providing park and playground facilities and their implementation needs to be ensured. A strong public voice may also be helpful.
Amir M Sayem
Chief Editor
Dhaka Opinion Magazine
