VIPs get preference for sudden interest to travel by train
The fascination for journey by train that grew quite suddenly among very important persons forced Bangladesh Railway to set aside extra tickets for them on the occasion of Eid depriving many ordinary citizens keen on celebrating the festival in the countryside, railway sources said.
The unexpected popularity of Bangladesh’s much neglected train is attributed to tedious travel by overcrowded roads and highways with the traffic unable to move often for hours. Thanks to an extraordinary increase in private cars it takes much longer these days to reach any destination in the country by road.
Usually, the railway kept five per cent of the seats reserved for VIPs, including the ministers, state-ministers, judges and bureaucrats, which they preferred not to avail.
The new interest of the VIPs, however, forced the railway to set aside about 20 per cent of the tickets for them, leaving many common people out.
The extra pressure of VIPs on the railway created a shortage of tickets for the common citizens keen to go home to celebrate Eid.
Many of them queued up for hours without getting the tickets, an unspecified number of them was forced to pay more to buy tickets from the black market.
Many who prefer railway journey to avoid risky buses had hard luck getting the tickets, said several frustrated passengers.
Travel by Dhaka-Chittagong highway, connecting more than two dozens districts, could be too frustrating due to unending tailbacks, said Shamim Siddique, a 30-year old mid ranking professional.
It took him more than 10 hours, he said, to reach the port city from Dhaka last Eid.
Atiur Rahman, a businessman told New Age that he was compelled to buy three railway tickets from the black marketers after managing to get one ticket from the counter.
Officials blamed the negligence of successive governments to enhance the capacity of the railway for its inability to carry more passengers, especially on occasions like Eid.
They said that the railway would press 65 additional coaches into service for carrying extra rush of Eid passengers.
The railway would, they said, run 16 intercity trains and special trains for carrying the festival passengers.
The railway expects to carry 70,000 Eid passengers, and at least 17,500 of them would get no seats.
The officials said it would mean selling 25 per cent of the tickets to standing passengers.
Railway officials remained busy attending phone calls from Bangabhaban, Prime Minister’s office, the ministries and the MPs for tickets.
According to rough estimates 60 to 70 per cent of the capital’s over 1.50 crore people leave the city to celebrate Eid in the countryside.
