Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
In the recent past, one of the things that has been quite visible while visiting Dhaka is the overabundance of posters. Almost every wall of Dhaka city is full of posters of many different types, from political posters to posters involving the advertisement of many products.
These posters have become such a face of Dhaka that the fact that they are contributing negatively to the aesthetics of the city is something that seldom comes to our attention.
They are not only confined to the walls but are rather ubiquitous, and their presence can be noticed in overbridges, footpaths, pillars of Metrorail, the boundary walls of educational institutions, and many more places. Even electric polls are not spared when it comes to these posters.
Posters for movies, coaching centres, and government organisations on various days are among the torn-up posters that keep hanging in these places mostly.
Although this phenomenon has reached an ugly state in the capital city, its presence in the country should not be underestimated either.
The posters are mostly to advertise various issues. However, they are in no way playing this role and have rather become a big hindrance when it comes to the aesthetic beauty of Dhaka.
A lot of these posters are not even stuck legally; that is, the appropriate authorities do not approve their presence, and as per the Wall Writing and Placing of Posters (Regulation) Act 2012, the perpetrators should be subject to fines. The authority will have every right to eradicate unlawful posters. However, this particular law is not followed in this regard either.
Reckless posters have destroyed the beauty of the entire city, just as air, water, and noise pollution harms people's lungs, digestive systems, and ears. It is a terrible mental torment and punishment for those who value beauty.
Fahim Shahriar Priyo, a student at the University of Dhaka and an inhabitant of the Puran Dhaka area, told the writer in this regard,
"When I was growing up, there were few posters in the vicinity. But it has been rampant in the last few years. It has reached a level that without proper policy measures taken to get rid of the unlawful and the ugly posters, Dhaka city will turn into a distasteful place when aesthetics are concerned."
Fahim's opinions are supported by most of the people belonging to the young generation, who are concerned with the aesthetically distasteful outlook of the city.
Dhaka already has a lot of problems when it comes to air pollution as well as population density, which makes it an undesirable place to live. However, these posters seem to be the nail in the coffin for the aesthetic beauty of Dhaka.
Unless taken care of with appropriate measures, the situation will likely worsen.