20 years on, Karwan Bazar relocation gets fresh push under new govt
After 20 years of plans and repeated postponements, the government has another chance to complete the journey that began in 2006.
After two decades of plans, delays and missed deadlines, the new BNP government has renewed efforts to relocate Karwan Bazar's kitchen market to Gabtoli, this time as part of a broader initiative to ease traffic congestion and reorganise Dhaka's transport and wholesale markets.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman yesterday (29 August) directed the authorities to begin the process of relocating the kitchen market from Karwan Bazar to Gabtoli.
The decision is part of a wider government initiative to tackle Dhaka's worsening traffic congestion, including relocating the Fulbaria bus terminal to Keraniganj, expanding the Gabtoli bus terminal and introducing electronic toll collection on expressways and flyovers.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
The latest move has revived a relocation plan that has been on the government's agenda for nearly two decades. The idea is not new. But unlike previous attempts, the latest initiative places the relocation within a broader plan to reorganise some of the capital's major transport and wholesale-market hubs.
2006: The journey begins
The government first approved a Tk206 crore project in 2006 to relocate wholesale and retail kitchen-market businesses from Karwan Bazar to alternative locations.
The project envisaged developing markets at Jatrabari, Aminbazar and other locations, with the aim of taking wholesale trading activities out of the congested centre of Dhaka.
2008: Construction starts
Implementation of the project began after delays involving land and other administrative issues. The project was subsequently revised, pushing up its cost and extending the implementation period.
The authorities expected the alternative markets to be ready and the relocation process to move ahead by 2010.
2010: First deadline missed
The first major deadline came and went without Karwan Bazar being relocated. The authorities subsequently extended the project, with the completion target pushed back.
The failure to meet the original deadline would become a recurring feature of the relocation effort.
2013–15: Market places are built, but traders do not move
The government eventually developed alternative wholesale markets, including facilities at Mohakhali, Jatrabari and Aminbazar. But building alternative markets proved easier than moving the traders. Traders raised concerns about the locations, accessibility, size of shops and the loss of their established customer base at Karwan Bazar.
The Jatrabari wholesale market, completed in 2015 with hundreds of shops, became an example of the problem: infrastructure was available, but traders were reluctant to relocate.
2016: Another push
The relocation effort received fresh momentum in 2016. The city authorities announced plans to start moving traders to alternative markets and set November as a target for beginning the process. But the target was not achieved.
2020: Fourteen years after the project
By 2020, the original relocation project was already 14 years old. Yet the market remained where it had always been. The authorities had constructed alternative facilities, but the lack of agreement with traders and questions about the suitability of the new locations continued to frustrate the relocation effort.
The prolonged delay also raised concerns over the use of public money on facilities that were not being fully utilised.
2022: Gabtoli enters the picture
A significant change came in 2022, when Gabtoli and Sayedabad emerged as proposed destinations for Karwan Bazar's wholesale activities.
The city authorities said the plan was at an advanced stage and envisioned eventually turning the centrally located Karwan Bazar area into a modern commercial hub.
The same year, the government also renewed its push to move wholesale kitchen markets away from central Dhaka, with locations on the outskirts—including Aminbazar and Keraniganj—being considered.
2023: Why has it taken so long?
In 2023, the city authorities again tried to accelerate the process. A committee was formed to work on relocating Karwan Bazar's traders, while Jatrabari and Aminbazar again featured prominently in discussions.
But the fundamental problem remained: traders were unwilling to leave a location that had developed over decades into a major wholesale distribution centre. Concerns over transport links, customer access and business viability continued to complicate the process.
2024: A partial move towards Gabtoli
In 2024, the relocation process showed signs of moving beyond repeated announcements. The DNCC began taking steps to relocate businesses from a risky building at Karwan Bazar. One hundred seventy-six permanent shops and 180 temporary shops were earmarked for relocation to Gabtoli.
The move was also linked to plans to demolish the risky building and improve safety in the area.
2026: A fresh start under the new govt
Now, two decades after the original project was approved, Gabtoli has once again emerged as the destination.
The latest directive from the new government gives fresh momentum to the relocation effort, while placing it within a wider strategy for managing Dhaka's traffic and urban infrastructure.
The government's challenge now is to turn the latest decision into an executable plan—one that addresses the concerns of traders, ensures adequate facilities and transport connections at Gabtoli, and provides a realistic roadmap for the transition.
The history of Karwan Bazar shows that the problem has never been simply about identifying another location.
Alternative markets have been proposed and, in several cases, constructed. Deadlines have been announced repeatedly. Yet the market has remained in place because relocation involves thousands of traders, workers, suppliers, transport operators and consumers whose businesses have developed around the existing hub.
The latest plan therefore represents both an opportunity and a test. If the government can successfully move the wholesale market while ensuring that traders have viable commercial facilities and consumers retain access to fresh produce, the relocation could finally deliver what earlier plans could not: less congestion in central Dhaka and a more organised wholesale-market network for the capital.
For now, after 20 years of plans and repeated postponements, the government has another chance to complete the journey that began in 2006.
