Dhaka’s alleys, wet markets, restaurants, drains and residential quarters face a growing infestation of rats. Foraging openly during daylight hours, the rodents are no longer a mere urban nuisance but a rising public health threat. Health experts warn that rats vector multiple pathogens, contaminating food and water supplies through their excrement, urine and physical contact. The risk of transmission remains critically high in densely populated urban centres like the capital.
Urban planners attribute this uncontrolled rodent proliferation to deficient waste management and unplanned urbanisation. Neglected waste collection, open dumping and a deficit of public bins compound the crisis. While scientific waste disposal remains a prerequisite for safeguarding urban health, Bangladesh has failed to establish a modern, functional sanitation framework since independence. This structural failure continues to drive infestations of rats, mosquitoes and other disease vectors across the capital.
Global anxiety over rodent-borne diseases intensified in May after hantavirus killed three people aboard a vessel in the Atlantic Ocean. Although that outbreak has been contained, specialists warn that rodents carry at least 60 transmissible diseases, posing a severe threat to urban populations.
Zoologists describe rats as highly adaptable and intelligent mammal that thrives in human proximity. The animals colonise dark and secluded spaces such as burrows, sewers, refuse heaps, warehouses, kitchen crevices and cracks in buildings.
Two primary species dominate the urban landscape: the large brown rat and the roof rat. Omnivorous by nature, these rodents subsist on grains, rice, wheat, fruit, vegetables, food scraps and decaying organic matter. In times of scarcity, they gnaw through paper and other soft materials, driving rapid population growth in unsanitary and waste-heavy environments.
Rats were historically a rural grievance, devouring paddy and destroying standing crops. Safeguarding harvests forced farmers to expend additional labour and capital to combat the rodents. That dynamic has somewhat shifted: industry observers note that rising pesticide use has driven down rural rat populations, while urban infestations — particularly in the capital — have surged. The rodents now visibly overrun Dhaka’s wet markets, waste heaps and modern residential developments.
Zoologists attribute this rise in urban rat population to deficient municipal waste management and an abundance of discarded food, which accelerates breeding cycles. Blocked sewers, plastic-choked drains and stagnant canals offer secure sanctuaries. Furthermore, rapid urbanisation has erased wetlands and open spaces, forcing rats from natural habitats into urban centres, a crisis compounded by construction works and a high population density.
“Rat populations have indisputably surged,” Dr Niamul Naser, professor of zoology at the University of Dhaka, told Bonik Barta. “Visit any wet market in the capital, and you’ll see massive rats foraging even in broad daylight.”
Dr Naser identified uncollected refuse as the primary catalyst for the infestation. “An elementary biological rule dictates that a species multiplies as its food supply expands,” he said. “This principle drives Dhaka’s rodent surge. Accumulated waste, street-side dumps and discarded grain in market areas provide an abundant and accessible food supply, accelerating reproduction. Rodent activity has also risen inside Dhaka homes to unprecedented levels.”
He warned of cascading ecological consequences if the trend continues. “An uncontrolled rat population will eventually draw more snakes into the city, as rodents are their primary prey. Failure to secure a clean city will not only heighten public health risks but inevitably invite deadly pests and predators into the capital.”
Virologists warn that rodents host an array of pathogens, transmitting diseases to humans through contact with their faeces, urine and dander. This multidimensional threat encompasses contaminated foodstuffs, fouled water supplies and unsanitary domestic environments. Deficient municipal sanitation drives concurrent surges in rats, mosquitoes, flies and other vectors, compounding the strain on the public healthcare architecture.
This rodent proliferation correlates directly with heightened public health risks. Virologists note that rats transmit life-threatening illnesses such as hantavirus and leptospirosis, while playing an indirect role in circulating pathogens that cause rheumatic fever and typhoid.
“Hantavirus is typically vectored by rodents, and the virus is present in Bangladesh,” Dr Mahbubul Hasan Siddiqee, professor of microbiology at BRAC University, told Bonik Barta. “Though the domestic variant is relatively low in virulence, the risk can’t be dismissed. Rats shed both viruses and various bacteria. These pathogens enter the human body directly, through the air or via contaminated food from the animal’s body, fur and excrement.”
Dr Siddiqee added that while rats do not directly carry typhoid bacilli, they act as mechanical vectors. “If a rodent runs across food or utensils, pathogens clinging to its body are transferred, exposing humans to indirect infection.”
The professor also flagged shrews as a severe public health hazard, noting that public confusion often blurs the distinction between the two mammals. “Shrew bites can transmit rabies, which is almost invariably fatal if left untreated. In my view, shrew-borne rabies poses a far more terrifying threat than hantavirus.”
Sir Salimullah Medical College and Mitford Hospital (SSMCMH) is one of the capital’s oldest and largest public healthcare facilities, drawing thousands of patients and their relatives from across the country daily. However, patients and their families have long complained about the hospital’s overall condition.
They express deep dissatisfaction over the accumulated waste, pervasive stench and unsanitary conditions throughout the wards, corridors and open spaces. Litter piles up beside exposed drains in multiple locations, worsening the conditions. These areas suffer from visible infestations of flies, mosquitoes and rats, compounding patient distress and heightening the risk of hospital-acquired infections.
Public health experts warn that a rising rodent population in the capital correlates directly with increased risks to human health. While rats may not always transmit diseases directly, they readily act as vectors for harmful pathogens.
“Direct disease transmission from rodents is relatively low in Bangladesh,” public health expert Dr Lelin Choudhury told Bonik Barta. “But rats typically inhabit putrid waste. From there, they migrate to water sources, food and utensils, transferring the pathogens picked up from waste. Consequently, the proliferation of these animals in the capital poses a severe threat to public health.”
The capital faces a parallel surge in other waste-related pests, notably mosquitoes and flies, compounding risks to urban health. Environmental specialists assert that Dhaka’s twin city corporations lag significantly in implementing scientific waste management.
“The primary prerequisite of waste management is segregation at source,” Dr Fahmida Parvin, professor of environmental sciences at Jahangirnagar University, told Bonik Barta. “Refuse must be collected from households, transferred to designated landfills and subsequently converted into resources. In many nations, waste no longer exists; everything is repurposed. But in Dhaka, fish scales, vegetable scraps, old clothing and even medicine bottles are collected together. The failure begins at the very point of origin.”
Specialists warn that failure to secure rapid, scientific waste management will accelerate the proliferation of rodents and insect vectors, creating long-term health risks for residents.
Officials from both city corporations maintain that new initiatives are underway to upgrade waste infrastructure, citing regular cleanliness drives, the installation of modern bins and public awareness campaigns. But officials also note that a permanent solution remains impossible without civic cooperation.
“Segregating waste at source is the correct protocol, but we remain behind in this area,” Air Commodore Md Mahbubur Rahman Talukder, chief waste management officer of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), told Bonik Barta. “We plan to launch pragmatic initiatives by increasing citizen engagement. Source-segregation pilots will initially roll out in select wards, with a long-term goal of city-wide expansion.”