Within the same small area can be seen the latest steel and concrete designs side by side with 100-year-old beams and masonry. Monstrous high-rises reaching for the sky are dwarfing ancient palatial mansions that crouch and crumble under the imposing structures.

There's no doubt that the architectural heritage of old Dhaka is being lost. And you have to rely on the power of your imagination to find the hallmarks of the building styles a century ago, which was part Mughal, part Victorian and indigenous to a certain degree.

The ancient mansions, a part of the glorious history of this city, in places like Chowk Bazar, Showari Ghat, Debidash Ghat, Becharam Deuri, Imam Ganj, Armanitola, Bangshal, Nazimuddin Road, Mitford, Islampur, Dhupkhola, Gandaria and other old neighborhoods are on the verge of extinction because of lack of maintenance.

The people living in these houses are mostly those whose ancestors were rich businessmen or worked under the Nawabs during that era.

Hasan Haqimul Haq of Lalbag area is one of them. He was born and brought up in old Dhaka and the house he lives in is reportedly among the oldest in the city. The building is now in a decrepit state. Yet some of the pillars stand out boldly, mocking the passage of time. The fine carvings and designs on each pillar are still visible.

Haq explains that the house was built around 1938 by his grandfather who had settled in Dhaka during the 1920s.

It's a three-storied structure with balconies on the second and third floors. "The windows and window panes still have heavy wood carving and the pillars are beautifully designed with a mixture of Mughal and Victorian patterns," Haq said.

The patterns are discolored now and some pillars might have developed cracks, yet whatever is left is good enough to announce what a masterpiece this house was in its glory days. There are numerous other buildings scattered around the old city which haven't completely lost their glory.

Sadly the authorities, namely the Dhaka City Corporation, is yet to take any initiative to preserve such relics. Most of the owners of these houses have been living there for generations but their resources are stretched to maintain the structures.

The reality is modern apartments, multi-storied apartment blocks - some even ten to twelve storeys high - destroying the vista of old buildings. In many cases, the old structures have been scrapped and new houses have been built in their place.

"It would have been a different picture if the entire old Dhaka had been declared a world heritage site. That way, its ancient buildings would have been faithfully preserved," observed Dr Momin Chowdhury, vice chancellor of National University and a former professor of the History Department of Dhaka University.

As far as the maintenance or preservation of these relics are concerned, the 'Ahsan Manzil' refurbishment, which took place over a decade ago, can be seen as a positive example.

Previously, the building and its premises were occupied by undesirable elements and the area was in tatters. The government took an initiative to protect the site and it is now one of the most well looked-after historic attractions of the city.

The same kind of enterprise could save historic old Dhaka from becoming just a memory.