Ministry proposes Tk 11.55b project to rebuild DMC's age-old infrastructure

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has proposed a Tk 11.55-billion development project to replace and reconstruct the age-old and earthquake-prone infrastructure at Dhaka Medical College (DMC), much of which was developed in the 1950s and is now considered structurally unsafe.

The project aims to strengthen the institution as a leading medical education centre by improving its infrastructure to enhance the quality, sustainability and modern standards of medical teaching as well as to reinforce the overall academic environment, the Planning Commission (PC) officials said.

They said the health ministry sent the development project proposal (DPP) of the "Replacement and Reconstruction of Unusable Structures of Dhaka Medical College" project to the PC last week. The project, fully funded by the government, has an implementation target by February 2030.

Analysis of the DPP shows that Tk 8.77 billion, or around 76 per cent of the total estimated cost, has been proposed for infrastructure development, particularly for academic and residential buildings.

Academic infrastructure alone accounts for nearly half of the total budget, covering a 15-storey academic building with basements, lecture theatres and examination halls.

Student housing represents about one-fifth of the total allocation to address acute accommodation shortages, while faculty residential quarters account for roughly one quarter of the project cost to improve staff housing conditions.

The residential quarter's segment alone is set to account for around Tk 3.0 billion, which is 25.96 per cent of the total.

The project will ensure necessary funding for electrical installations and sub-stations, water supply systems, deep tubewells and sanitation, fire safety systems, and environmental infrastructure, such as waste management, sewage treatment plants and rainwater harvesting facilities.

These investments are intended to ensure safety compliance, operational efficiency and long-term

sustainability of the upgraded campus, according to the DPP.

DMC is the country's oldest and premier medical institution, established in 1946. Its campus currently has around 60 buildings of varying age and condition.

Although the attached hospital has 2,600 beds, it reportedly treats around 3,500 to 4,000 admitted patients daily, reflecting heavy pressure on facilities and infrastructure, as per the proposal.

The DPP also noted that several dormitories - built in the 1950s - have become severely dilapidated.

The fourth floor of Dr Fazle Rabbi Hall, a hostel for male students constructed in 1955, has already been declared unsafe and abandoned by the Public Works Department, worsening the ongoing student accommodation crisis.

A senior official at the health ministry said the project is expected to significantly strengthen medical education, improve institutional learning conditions, and modernise the campus through energy-efficient systems and environmentally-sustainable infrastructure.

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