Redevelopment of RDA market area

Abstract

In this century, now Rajshahi is a metropolitan city and a major urban, commercial and educational center of Bangladesh. With the arrival of the Dutch kings in Rajshahi during the 18th century, trade and commerce began. Later, during the occupation of this area by the Dutch and British, indigo and silk farming expanded, and Shaheb Bazar came to serve as the hub of the city of Rajshahi's economic prosperity. While the Natore-Nawabganj highway was being built in 1987, many shop owners and shopkeepers suffered losses. To aid in their restoration, the Rajshahi Development Authority (RDA) filled in the pond behind the former Shaheb Bazaar market and erected a market that became known as RDA market. With time, the area from Moni Chattar to Zero point node transformed into the most significant commercial zone in the city's center thanks to the RDA Market and Shaheb Bazar vegetable market, banks and offices, student hostels that were later established surrounding the market, and the remaining portion of the old Shaheb Bazaar market. RDA market, while being one of Rajshahi's most significant markets, was deemed hazardous in 2013 due to a number of issues, including structural fragility, a high risk of fire, a lack of natural light, and poor ventilation access. Since then, these issues have made it more difficult to use this well-known market. The goal of the project is to investigate the interactions between various sorts of functions while constructing a hybrid urban civic breathing space at the important commercial hub of a city on an urban scale.