Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban was given Muzharul Islam first, to design by the government. But, Islam brought his teacher Louis Kahn into the project to do a significant work for future generation. Muzharul Islam assisted Kahn at the project. According to Robert McCarter, author of Louis I. Kahn, it "is one of the twentieth century's greatest architectural monuments, and is without question Kahn's magnum opus.
Louis I. Kahn came to prominence after designing Richards Medical Laboratories, Philadelphia. His other distinctive works include the Philips Exeter Academy Library, Bryn Mawr Dormitories, Yale Art Gallery, Salk Institute, Kimble Art Museum, Management Centre in Ahmedabad, India, Family Planning Centre, Nepal etc. His biggest as also the best work is considered to be the Jatiya Sangsad complex. After the death of Luis I Kahn, his junior Henry Wilcot completed the revised design of the complex. Hery M Pambam made the structural design. The building is indeed a marvel of synthesis of ideas and engineering.
Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban was originally commissioned by the Pakistanis when Bangladesh was known as East Pakistan after Partition of the Indian Sub-Continent, was meant to serve as the second seat of the national parliament. Construction of Bangladesh National Parliament started in 1964 but halted due to the Bangladeshi War of independence, and finally the work of the Jatiya Sangsad building was completed in early 1982, and was inaugurated on 28 January 1982 by the then President Justice Abdus Sattar. The inaugural session of the Jatiya Sangsad commenced in this building on 15 February 1982.
Data of construction:
* Beginning of construction: 1961
* Cost of construction and design: Tk. 129 crore or 1.29 billion (=1,290,000,000)
* Inauguration: 28th January, 1982
* Architect: Louis I. Kahn
* Total area: 200 acres (800,000 m²)
* Location: Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka
* Number of Parliaments: 10 (Running)
* GIS coordinates: 23.762465°,90.378545°
There have been ten national elections in Bangladesh. The first and second Parliaments used the Old Shangshad Bhaban, which currently serves as the Prime Minister's Office.
The main characteristic of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban is its monumentality. The mass of concrete lined with marble strips, the outer wall punctuated by pure geometrical openings and the dominating circular and rectangular concrete masses impart a supreme monumentality to the building quite suited to its noble functions. At the dead center of the building is the main hall where MPs sit and the sessions of the Jatiya Sangsad are held. The plan is concentric; various layers of functions are situated around the main hall. A seven-storied high ambulatory, with light coming from the roof, surrounds the assembly hall like a circumambulatory path around a deity. There are four identical office blocks along four arms with other functions on four corners. There is also an elaborate circulation system with a series of different types of stairs. The plan is essentially a square manipulated into an octagon. There are nine levels with horizontal connections in three floors only. The height of the structure is 49.68m (163 ft) above the ground.
The main building complex consists of nine individual blocks, of which eight at its periphery rise to a height of 110 feet, while the octagonal block at the center shoots up to 155 feet. The central block accommodates the Assembly chamber with a capacity of 354 seats for members of the Sangsad. The entire complex has a floor area of 823,000 square feet in the main building, 223,000 square feet in the South Plaza and 65,000 square feet in the North Plaza. The formal entrance through the south plaza gradually rises to a height of 20 feet and 6 inches in a broad flight of stairs.
The basement accommodates a parking area, offices of maintenance agencies and service installations for the main building. The building has a water body of artificial lake touching its walls on all sides, and the North and the South plaza tie it to the site. From a distance, the edifice appears as if it rose out of water. The approach to the Sangsad Bhaban is through the grand plaza on the south and through the Presidential Square from the north with gardens of green grass and eucalyptus trees. The northern approach has an amphitheatre where state functions are held. Further north across the North Plaza there is a road by the side of the Crescent Lake.
There is not a single column in the whole building. Hollow columns that are parts of space enclosures have been adapted as structural supports. It is more like a concrete mass carefully carved and sculptured into a superbly functional entity. The construction material used is concrete and cast concrete forms, both interior and exterior surfaces. Use of light and the unique way of bringing light to public spaces is an interesting element of Kahn’s design. Light from the roof illuminate different spaces as if ambient glows are showered from heaven.
One of the important considerations in designing the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban was protection from the sun and rain, while admitting free circulation of air achieved by providing huge geometric openings at the outer facade in the form of triangles, rectangles, full and segmented circles and flat arches. The structure provides a visual impression of a majestic edifice. It avoided conventional method of placing windows in the exterior and the disadvantages of monumental composition were removed by provision of core walls with small gaps in between. Architecturally, the complex marks a distinct departure from the rest of modern buildings in Dhaka.
The main criticism of the building is its exorbitant construction and maintenance cost. The total cost of the complex with a floor space of 6,27,833 square feet (Sangsad Building, 3.44 acres; North Plaza, 1.46 acres; South Plaza 4.98 acres and residential buildings, hostels, gardens, roads, lakes etc) was TK. 128.00 crores (1280 million). There are 50 staircases, 340 toilets, 1635 doors, 335 windows, 300 partitions, 35,850 sft glass shutter, 58,500 sft wooden shutter, 1,33,500 cft wooden panels in the building. The annual maintenance and operational expenses of the building is about five and a half crores (55 million) taka. The top floor or Level-10 of the building is used for different machinery.
The Jatiya Sangsad building has been discussed and referred to in almost all architectural publications in all parts of the world. It was also awarded the Aga Khan Award for Architecture. The following citation text published at the time of award giving ceremony expresses an evaluation of the project.
It says:
Faced with an imposing architectural work of extraordinary power, clarity of form and beauty, the
jury could not help but question the compatibility of Sher-e-Banglanagar with the needs and aspirations, of a poor country. Yet a review of the building’s design and construction plans on site studies reveal that over time it has come to enjoy overwhelming approval, it stands as a symbol of democracy in Bangladesh and has influenced that country in a variety of beneficial ways. Reaching beyond the architecture of the immediate area, the building has assimilated important archetypes of the region among other ways through the extension of its parks and water pools. The architect has re-interpreted and transformed these ideas through a process that applied concepts of construction technology to conditions specific to the Dhaka locale. The result is a building that while universal in its source of forms, aesthetics and technologies could be in no other place.
Although entrance to the Bhaban, the Main Building, is limited to authorized members of Parliament and staff, the Jatiyo Sangshad complex is open to visitors. On the North of complex, across the Lake Road, is Crescent Lake and Zia Uddan (also called Chondrima Uddan). The two complexes together form a major attraction for tourists in Dhaka. The complexes are popular among joggers and skaters of Dhaka. The official Prime Minister's Residence is on the North West corner of the Mirpur Road and Lake Road crossing and is a five minute walk from the Jatiyo Sangsad Bhaban. The area is one of the highest security zones of Dhaka.
The Complex can be accessed using any of the four roads surrounding it, however, the Manik Mia Avenue and Lake Road are the easiest approaches.
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