LAND-USE AND LAND-COVER CHANGE IN DHAKA CITY, BANGLADESH: A GIS AND REMOTE SENSING APPROACH

Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, is considered as the eighth largest city in the world because of its land area and high population density. The rapid change in Land-use and Land-cover (LULC) and unplanned urban expansion is receiving considerable attention from the local policy makers and international community. This study used Geographic Information System (GIS) and remote sensing techniques to examine the pattern and direction of LULC change in Dhaka metropolitan city.This study utilized three different remotely sensed datasets in order to analyze LULC classes and their potential individually. Remotely sensed data including Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM), Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) and Operational Land Imager (OLI) were used to estimate the pattern and direction of the LULC change. This study used a supervised classification procedure because of its better control over the classification and error detection, and making corrections. A Post classification comparison change detection techniques was used to estimate the major change between different land classes. The study revealed that built-up area increased significantly from 1989 to 2014 with an annual expansion of 81.54%. This analysis also quantified that this significant growth of built-up areas in the study area resulted from the substantial decrease of vegetation cover and potential agricultural land. It was apparent that 87.77% of the significant change occurred in agricultural land over the study period. Results drawn from this research should contribute to the update of LULC information, forecasting possible future LULC change and ensuring the sustainable development of the city.