Dhaka will be the second largest city in the world by 2015, next to Tokyo, with a growth of urban population at a rate of 3.1 percent per year, reported the daily New Age on Wednesday.

This was revealed in a a report of the United Nations Population Division on agglomeration in the world cities.

Dhaka's position in terms of population in 2001 was eighth among ten most densely populated cities and it will be the second with projected population of some 21.1 million in 2015.

Dhaka will surpass Sao Paulo, Bombay, New York, Mexico City, Calcutta in 2015 with inclusion of two more Asian cities Jakarta and Karachi in the list and exit of Los Angeles and Shanghai, saidthe UN report.

In 1950s, Dhaka's total population was 417,000 and with 6.6 percent growth rate the number jumped to about 2.17 million in thenext 25 years.

The growth rate marked a rise to 6.9 percent in the last quarter of the twentieth century, which raised the number of the city's population to some 12.3 million.

During 1975-2000, seven cities have attained the status of mega-cities. Four of those mega-cities had growth rates above four percent per year, including Dhaka with 6.9 percent, Lagos with 5.6percent, Hyderabad with 4.8 percent and Karachi with 4.3 percent.

Lagos, Dhaka, Karachi and Jakarta will likely grow at annual rates ranging from three percent to 3.6 percent till 2015, which are high given the present mega-city status of the cities.

Source: Xinhua