In a Nutshell:
- Prime Minister Tarique Rahman directed authorities to relocate Kawran Bazar’s kitchen market to Gabtoli to ease traffic congestion in the area.
- The directive does not mention any rehabilitation or business-transition plan for Kawran Bazar traders, raising questions about where and how existing businesses will operate during and after the move.
- He also mentioned other directives, including shifting the Fulbaria Bus Terminal to Keraniganj, building a temporary terminal on 15 acres of Jhilmil land within four months, and expanding the Gabtoli Bus Terminal.
- He also ordered the introduction of Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) at expressway and flyover toll plazas, a BUET review of congestion at the Jatrabari-Gulistan Flyover, and steps to improve parking around the Secretariat.
Context
Kawran Bazar has been at the centre of Dhaka’s wholesale food trade for decades, but its location in the middle of the capital has also made it a persistent source of congestion. Successive governments have tried to relocate the market since 2006, spending hundreds of crores to build alternative wholesale markets in Aminbazar, Jatrabari and Mohakhali. Yet traders have repeatedly resisted, citing inadequate space, poor access and concerns that moving away from the established trading network would hurt their businesses.
Why it matters
The Kawran Bazar decision addresses a genuine urban-planning problem: a major wholesale market operating in the heart of Dhaka generates a continuous flow of trucks, vans, porters, retailers and buyers, adding pressure to already congested roads. Relocation could therefore free valuable road space and reduce freight-related congestion in Tejgaon and surrounding areas. But the market is not simply a collection of shops that can be transferred from one address to another. It is an established commercial ecosystem that connects wholesalers with suppliers, transporters, retailers, and customers across Dhaka. Previous relocation attempts failed largely because authorities built physical markets without ensuring that the new locations were commercially viable for traders.
What we think
The new Gabtoli plan, therefore, creates a critical policy question: will traders actually move, or will Kawran Bazar continue informally while a new market is created in Gabtoli? If traders are compelled to leave without viable alternatives, businesses could suffer, supply chains could be disrupted, and resistance could delay implementation. Conversely, if Gabtoli receives proper infrastructure and a functioning wholesale ecosystem, the relocation could become a significant step toward decentralising Dhaka’s food distribution network. The outcome will depend less on the announcement itself than on whether the government can make Gabtoli commercially workable.