LAW OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT IN BANGLADESH: A CRITICAL STUDY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO KHULNA MASTER PLAN

Planned development is of foremost importance for a sustainable and better living environment. Introduction of this planned development is guided through a Master Plan prepared by the public authority within a regulatory framework. Bangladesh is also practicing the method of planned development through master planning activities. There are limited rules and regulations on the preparation and execution of the master plan. Some of the regulations are outdated and inconsistent with the present development activities. Effectiveness of the regulations depends on the efficient and necessary regulations. Planned development should conform with the establishment of guided regulations of the preparation and execution of the master plan. But, in Bangladesh, regulations on the master plan are outdated, irrelevant and somewhere unpredictable. These are some of the major drawbacks of the planned development guided through the master plan. In Bangladesh, four development authorities namely, RAJUK (Rajdhani Unnayan Kartipakkha), CDA (Chittagong Development Authority), KDA (Khulna Development Authority) and RDA (Rajshahi Development Authority) are entitled to prepare master plans according to the Town Improvement Act 1953, Chittagong Development Authority Ordinance 1959, Khulna Development Authority Ordinance 1961 and Rajshahi Development Authority Ordinance, 1976 respectively. Except these, all Pourashavas or Municipalities are entitled to prepare master plan according to the Pourashava Ordinance 1977 and Municipal Administration Ordinance 1960 but they are not performing such activities. The study follows the major drawbacks such as incomplete regulations, communication gap among the authorities, restricted use of land, poor punishment, disputed approval procedure, irregular involvement of police power, etc. involved with the preparation and execution of master plan prescribed through the contemporary regulations. It is necessary to remove these drawbacks as suggestion use in this article.