Extortion from launches and other river vessels has reached a stage in the absence of effective steps by law enforcers that it has become impossible for vessels to ply without paying such money, owners and workers alleged. River transport workers and owners are now virtually kept hostage by criminals and goons. The situation has put both the lives and livelihoods of the workers in danger, people in the sector said.
Mentioning the 20km route from Baidyer Bazar to Mohanpur, the workers alleged that criminals and extortionist are attacking all types of water vessels and collecting tolls on this route. About 350 trawlers and 40 coastal vessels ply the route every day.
Owners and workers estimate that the extortionists collect about Tk 2 lakh from this route everyday.
The Naujan Srramik Federation’s secretary general Chowdhury Ashikul Alam told New Age that Baidyer Bazar to Meghna Bridge and Gajaria to Meghna Bridge routes were the most risky for river vessels.
He said that although extortion from barges laden with sand had for long been going on, the recent trend showed that the extortionists were collecting money from coastal vessels plying the Dhaka–Chittagong route, which never happened in the past.
The Bangladesh Cargo Vessel Owners Association’s vice-president Laxman Chandra Dhar expressed his concern, saying that the cargo business is now in danger because of terrorists and extortionists.
It is not difficult to identify and round up the extortionists but for some reasons the law enforcers are allowing them to continue their
criminal activities, he alleged.
Laxman alleged that the shipping minister had assured them during a meeting at his ministry on July 8 that extortion would be stopped but no effective anti-extortion steps have yet been taken.
He said that the local police did not want to entertain any complaints against extortionists.
Asked to comment on extortion on river routes, the shipping minister, Shahjahan Khan, refused to say anything. ‘I do not want to make any comments about extortion on waterways at this moment,’ he told New Age on Saturday.
The deputy inspector general of police (Dhaka range), Asaduzzaman Mia, told New Age that it was not true that police had not taken proper measures to prevent extortion on waterways.
‘We are trying to ensure safe waterways but our logistics are inadequate,’ he added. He also said that no complaints from anywhere had reached him in the past two years in connection with extortion on the rivers.
In the latest incident of extortion on Sunday, at least 80 rivercraft, including lighterage vessels, had to pay tolls all the way from Shatnal in Munshiganj to Kalagachhia on the Narayanganj route.
Water transport workers recently called a strike to press home their demands which include stopping terrorism and extortion but they withdrew the strike on July 8 after the government had assured them that their demands would be met.
The workers complained that after the withdrawal of the strike, incidents of attack and extortion had increased on the waterways.
‘We will again go for strike if extortion from water vessels continues,’ the Naujan Sramik Federation’s secretary general Chowdhury Ashikul Alam told New Age.
Sources said that extortionists attacked at least four Dhaka-bound coastal vessels carrying food items and clinker from Chittagong. The vessels came under attack at Shatnal in Gajaria in Munshiganj on July 8.
The attacked vessels were MV Chander Alo-1, MV Mercantile-6 and MV Tiger of East Bengal.
One of the victims, Arif Hossain, who has been working as a master of lighterage vessel MV Mercantile-6 for 12 years, said that he had never faced extortionists before. He had only heard that the bulk cargo vessels often fell victim to extortionists but not the coastal vessels.
Arif, whose vessel carries various goods including food items from Chittagong Port to Dhaka, told New Age that his lighterage vessel had to pay toll at Shatnal on July 8 for the first time in the long 12 years of his service.
He said that five to six armed miscreants boarded the ship from a speedy trawler and demanded Tk 1,000 as toll, and they had no option but to pay. All the four vessels had to pay money.
Extortionist also robbed cash and mobiles from the ship named Tiger of East Bengal, Arif said.
The Gajaria police officer-in-charge, Shahidul Islam, told New Age that he was not aware of the incident and no one had filed any complaint with the police station.
‘The place where the incident took place is not under the Gajaria police jurisdiction,’ he said.
Costal vessel MV Sanyat’s master, Shahjahan Mia, told New Age that they had fallen into the clutches of extortionists opposite the Gajaria launch terminal at Sonargaon in Narayanganj on July 11.
Extortionists demanded Tk 500 as their ‘duty charge’ and asked them to pay the money regularly if they wanted to ply this route.
Shahjahan Mia said that more than 20 coastal vessels were victimised by extortionists on that day.
The Sonargaon police officer-in-charge also denied the allegation, saying that the incident took place in Munshiganj, which is beyond his jurisdiction.
The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority’s director (Nau Nirapatta Traffic) Mahfuzur Rahman said that they were trying to resist all kinds of extortion on waterways.
‘But it is difficult for us as we have no firearms. We inform the police of the incidents but they do not take any action,’ he said.
Mahfuzur said that the issue had been discussed at a meeting of the shipping ministry a few days ago and the participants decided to deploy the coastguards to prevent extortion on waterways.
-With New Age input
