Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Administrator Mohammad Azaz on Sunday confirmed the launch of a new digital platform called ‘Fair Dhaka’ that allows city residents to file complaints online, marking a fresh start in citizen engagement following the discontinuation of earlier apps under previous administrations.

The platform, introduced on 21 May through DNCC’s official Facebook page, allows users to file complaints across ten categories, including air pollution, noise pollution, waste management, and public infrastructure issues. The portal is accessible via fairdhaka.com.

Speaking to the Daily Sun, Azaz said, “We were unable to retrieve the previous app from its developer. To ensure that citizens still have a platform to voice their grievances, we’ve introduced the ‘Fair Dhaka’ digital complaint platform. We also plan to expand its features over time.”

The initiative follows the failure to maintain continuity with earlier platforms. In 2016, former DNCC Mayor Annisul Huq introduced the ‘Nogor’ app to streamline the process of handling public complaints. After his untimely death, the app fell into disuse and was replaced in 2021 by a new app called ‘Sobar Dhaka’ under then-Mayor Atiqul Islam, reportedly built at a cost of around Tk4 crore.

However, following the Awami League's exit from power and Atiqul Islam’s removal from office, DNCC officials say they were unable to regain access to the ‘Sobar Dhaka’ platform.

“The developer never handed over the app’s control,” said a DNCC ICT Cell official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We connected it to the DNCC main website on the administrator’s instruction, but we still don’t know who is managing it or monitoring complaints.”

The official added that a contractor recently submitted a costly proposal to develop a new app, but the administration rejected it and is currently awaiting a more viable alternative.

DNCC Public Relations Officer Md Jubayer Hossain told the Daily Sun that the ‘Fair Dhaka’ website has already been operational for several months and is receiving an average of 4–5 complaints per day, which are routed to the relevant departments.

“This is a web-based platform where any DNCC resident can file a complaint. My team and I are currently managing the website internally,” he said.

Urban planner and citizen rights advocate Adil Mohammed Khan, also the president of the Bangladesh Institute of Planners, criticised the lack of continuity in digital governance initiatives.

“Launching separate platforms under different mayors or administrators sends a negative message to the public,” he told the Daily Sun.

“What we need is a unified and continuously upgraded system. The repeated reinvention of platforms suggests that DNCC still operates on individual intuition rather than an institutional approach.”

Edited by Sayeed Hossain Shuvro