GENERAL Yahya Khan once went to visit a remote town in Pakistan while he was the president and the chief martial law administrator. He was later informed that the road leading to the town had been rebuilt only a week ago to facilitate his visit. In response he said, “If this is the way to build roads, I should be on the move all the time.”

I remembered the quote while observing the plight of roads in Dhaka. Pictures of bumpy roads of the city are being published in newspapers almost every day. Even the roads of Gulshan are no exception. The Gulshan Model Town was the brain-child of G. A. Madani, former chairman of the Dhaka Improvement Trust (DIT). He is no more but Madani Avenue in Baridhara bears his memory. Had he been alive today, he would have been shocked to see the present condition of his dream town which was supposed to be the most prestigious residential area in the capital city.

Gulshan lost its residential character long ago. Tall commercial buildings have sprung up all over the area. While only a single two-storied building was allowed on each plot originally, high-rise buildings now dominate the town's skyline. The traffic in Gulshan has become a nightmare to any commuter. Street vendors occupy parts of many footpaths creating obstructions to pedestrians.

Some of the roads in Gulshan have become notoriously famous for big potholes. For example, if you drive along Road No.104, you will have the experience of riding a roller-coaster (free of cost, of course)! Parts of the road have no footpaths or drains. As a result, it turns into a pool of water when it rains, making driving extremely risky.

Surprisingly enough, a few roads in Gulshan and other parts of the city are well maintained. They are paved regularly while others remain uncared for. They have excellent drainage systems and footpaths. One footpath in Gulshan has recently been renovated with ceramic tiles! How is it possible? Well, these are the roads where VIPs reside! They are popularly known as 'VIP roads'.

We tried our best to draw the attention of the city corporation on many occasions for repair of the roads where only commoners reside but who cares? I would, therefore, request all the VIPs residing in Dhaka to kindly move their residences to the non-VIP roads, periodically changing houses from one road to another, so that all the roads in the city gradually get repaired. We, the commoners, will remain ever grateful to them for this favour.

The writer is a former chief engineer of Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission.