News Desk : dhakamirror.com
To significantly increase the supply of perishable items, agricultural and other goods, Bangladesh Railway (BR) combined luggage vans with intercity trains on Sunday.
The first van was combined with Sylhet bound intercity train “Joyantika Express”.
Jayantika Express transported 4,600 kg of goods from Dhaka to Sylhet as Bangladesh Railway’s first intercity goods van service.
The train left Kamalapur station at 11:20am from platform no 5 after Railway Minister Md Nurul Islam Sujan inaugurated the service.
Bangladesh Railway generated Tk10,212 in revenue by transporting the goods at Tk2.22 per kg.
Modern luggage van facilities have been linked with railway communications aiming to provide diversified services to the common people, Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan said before inaugurating the service at Kamalapur Railway Station.
Fresh vegetables, seasonal fruits, flowers, perishable goods like fish, meat, milk and medicines can now be transported through railways, he added.
The project will also increase the revenue of the railways, which will contribute significantly to the economy of the country as a whole, the minister said.
A total of 16 goods vans have been added to 15 intercity trains. Besides, four more goods vans will be stationed at four regional stations, according to officials.
Regarding the service’s preparation, the minister said, “We have talked at various levels, from wholesalers to big businesses, before starting the service. It will need to compete with other modes of transportation to be more adaptable. Agents will be recruited soon to transport goods from the stations.”
The Railway Operations Division stated that a plan has been formulated to introduce 125 goods-carrying carriages to the railway. Among them, 75 will be for meter-gauge trains, and 50 will be for broad-gauge trains. There will be 10 freezer vans in the broad-gauge category and 16 freezer vans in the meter-gauge category.
The Dhaka-Sylhet route of the Eastern Railway will include goods vans on the Parabat Express train, and goods will be loaded and unloaded from Dhaka and Sylhet. Goods will also be transported to stations in Paharika and Udayan through the Parabat Express train, including Chattogram, Sylhet, and Sreemangal stations.
On the Bijoy Express route, goods vans will be added to the Chattogram, Mymensingh, Gauripur, Kishoreganj, and Bhairab Bazar stations. On the Brahmaputra Express route, goods vans will be added to Dhaka, Dewanganj, Melandah Bazar, Islampur Bazar, and Jamalpur.
On the Hawor Express route, goods vans will be added to Dhaka, Mymensingh, Netrakona, Mohanganj, and Mahanagar. On the Chattala Express train, goods vans will be added to Dhaka, Chattogram, Narsingdi, Bhairab Bazar, Feni, and Laksam stations.
Seventy-five goods vans have been imported from China. Among these, the first lot of 20 goods vans have been assigned to various trains, and loading and unloading stations have been designated by the Transport Division.
Of the 20 goods vans, 13 are assigned to the Eastern Region and three to the Western Region, with four spare vans stationed at Dhaka, Chattogram, Sylhet, and Lalmonirhat yards.
The cost of the tickets has been fixed between Tk1.46 to Tk3.12 per kg depending on different routes.
