However, with its very high population density, Dhaka faces a serious problem today in terms of maintaining and providing new infrastructure for its population, especially in the transportation sector, where the ack of adequate roads and means of transportation have recently led to the creation of severe traffic problems across the city. As one of the most densely populated cities in the world, perhaps some of these problems are to be expected.However, we believe that this problem has been exacerbated over the years through increasing migration from other parts of the country to the capital for a number of reasons that we will explore further in our who choose to migrate for economic reasons, end up as rickshaw-pullers upon their arrival in Dhaka, and thereby add to the number of vehicles plying Dhaka's already ongested streets. In fact, this phenomenon has become so prevalent over the years, that today the main form of transportation in this populous city is the Rickshaw, hence garnering for itself the name "The City of Rickshaws".Our research will therefore attempt to take a closer look at the main causes and events that lead to this migration of the rickshaw pullers of Dhaka city as well as explore alternatives that may help reduce this form of economic migration or perhaps even lead to a reversal of the trend towards the villages as well in future.
Economic Migration and the Plight of the Rickshaw-pullers Migration has been, and still is a major cause of over-population in Dhaka.The primary reason for migration is obvious - to find a way out of poverty and underemployment which is prevalent in most rural areas of Bangladesh. Interestingly, most of the male migrants who shift from rural areas to Dhaka city are seen to take on rickshaw pulling as their chosen profession. It is true that the informal profession of rickshaw pulling may be responsible for helping many out of rural poverty, but it is also of growing concern that this same profession is also contributing to worsening traffic condition all over the city, besides ccelerating the flow of rural immigrants.Besides this fact, it is also evident that in order to tackle the traffic situation in Dhaka city, rickshaws will eventually have to be banned or reduced from the roads.
When this is done, rickshaw-pullers may find themselves unemployed. It may also be the case that due to their lack of skills and education they may become unemployable as well. Hence, the purpose of this research is to explore whether any alternative Job prospects exist, to which rickshaw- pullers may switch to when that fateful time comes. LITERATURE REVIEW The Growth of the "Rickshaw Culture"
