Postwar & Welfare-Modernist (1945–1975)
Dhaka Master Plan
Core idea
Macro-structure for deltaic growth
Why it matters
Anticipates rapid urbanization on floodplain
Description
Dhaka's 1959 Master Plan applied modernist, functional zoning and a road-based growth framework to the rapidly expanding city, an early example of postwar comprehensive planning imported into the South Asian Global South.
Significance
The Dhaka plan illustrates the export of Western modernist planning models to fast-growing Global South cities, and the enduring tension between rigid master plans and the realities of rapid, informal urbanization.
What shaped it
- The master plan (early 20th c.)
- Zoning (1884 Germany / 1916 NYC)
- The British Empire and modern colonialism (1600 – 20th c.)
Sources
- https://architecture.arthistoryresearch.net/firms/minoprio-spencely
- https://www.academia.edu/32675240/Summary_of_Dacca_Master_Plan_1959
hub.toekom.st — History of Urbanism · an interactive timeline of 850 planned cities across 6,000 years.