Although about seven to eight million homebound people are expected to leave the capital to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr, a large number of passengers on different routes will face serious problems due to shortage of vehicles, locomotives and vessels, coupled with ticket mismanagement and safety issues. Black marketers are reported to have purchased the lion’s share of tickets in the hope making a quick buck by selling the tickets to the passengers. Passengers also said that they were not getting tickets as most of them were being sold on the black market and that they were having to pay extra. Mohammad Ali, a Thakurgaon-bound passenger who was standing in the queue for hours in front of Nabil Paribahan at Mazar Road in the city, complained that he had to pay Tk. 850 for a ticket which was usually priced between Tk. 600 and Tk. 650.
He also alleged that the tickets were being sold on the black market, as a result of which passengers were forced to buy them at a higher price.
Besides, passengers fear that they will suffer the most on the highways owing to traffic congestion, poor roads, accidents and extortion.
The Bangladesh Bus and Truck Owners’ Association has decided to sell advance bus tickets for passengers of 30 districts of the northern part of the country from today.
To cash in on the holiday rush, some bus owners are allegedly refurbishing their old and unfit vehicles to put them on the road without caring about safety issues. About 3,000 buses will leave the Gabtoli bus terminal daily with the average capacity of 36 seats.
“We have started selling advance tickets like previous years. We have also taken steps so that no one can sell tickets at a higher price. Steps have also been taken to stop black marketing of tickets,” said Romesh Chandra, vice-chairman of the Bangladesh Bus and Truck Owners’ Association.
The inadequate number of buses could have people prefer railways and river routes. However, the low capacity in the railways could further force the passengers to go for river routes. According to some passengers, there should be more trains as there is no alternative to trains when it comes to a safe journey. It is estimated that about 40 lakh people will leave the capital on river routes to the southern part of the country to celebrate Eid with their family and friends.
Normally 30,000 to 40,000 passengers travel every day on the 39 river routes, according to the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA).
“But during the Eid vacation, on an average over one lakh homebound people leave the capital every day,” said Saiful Haque Khan, joint director of the Sadarghat marine safety and traffic management department.
Taking this into consideration, the state-run Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) and private launch operators will start special services from August 6 to deal with the excessive pressure of passengers ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr. In addition, private launch operators will nearly double their trips, while they normally operate around 55 to 60 trips daily.
BIWTA chairman Shamsuddoha Khandaker said that different government bodies, law enforcement agencies and launch operators would take precautionary measures as this year’s Eid rush would coincide with the rainy season.
“It is estimated that about 70 to 80 lakh passengers will travel on different routes from the Sadarghat launch terminal during Eid,” he said.
He also said that the BIWTA would not allow any sand-laden cargo vessel from August 5 till the end of the Eid rush to avert accident. Scores of old, faulty and unfit launches are seen getting a quick repair and facelift on the banks of the Buriganga in South Keraniganj to carry passengers on various river routes ahead of Eid.
“The workers are busy day and night refurbishing and doing minor repairs on the vessels as this is the prime time for vessel business in the southern part of the country,” Shamim Ahmed, owner of MV Ovijan, told The Independent.
“We have to work day and night before Eid as the vessel owners are pressuring us to get the work done as soon as possible,” said a worker.
When asked about the fitness certificates of the vessels, he claimed that he had all the papers in place and the authorities inspected the vessels once a year.
“We are refurbishing and dyeing four vessels before Eid so that passengers choose us to reach their destinations,” said Farhad Hossain, proprietor of MV King Samrat.
“We don’t overload the vessels, but some passengers invariably occupy the roofs. We tell them to get off,” he added.
However, on visiting the roof of a vessel, it was found that the launch had plenty of space there to allow passengers to sit snugly atop the vessel.
Shamim Ahmed claimed that his launches on the Showla-Muladi route did not carry extra passengers during Eid to avert any untoward incident.
“We are careful in this regard. When we find that the launch is about to be overloaded, we stop allowing passengers to board,” he added.
Vessel owners operate a larger number of trips during Eid to earn a hefty amount as the number of passengers shoots up during this period.
The manager of another ship preferring anonymity said: “Vessel owners don’t want to miss even a single trip during Eid. So, they want to make sure that their vessels look fit and beautiful, and consequently do a quick refurbishing job ahead of Eid.”
According to department of shipping sources, more than 23,000 unregistered vessels operate on different routes across the country.
Since 1976, more than 4,400 people have been killed and 509 suffered injuries in accidents on the country’s river routes, according to their statistics.
Of the 9,024 vessels registered with the shipping department, 971 are passenger vessels, 23 are ferries and 80 are tugboats.
Commodore Jobair Ahmed, director general of the department of shipping, admitted that unfit vessels were being dyed to operate during Eid.
“We seized 18 passenger vessels last year for not having fitness and survey reports. We have already sent different teams to identify and take action against such vessels,” he said. No launch would be allowed to ply without proper certificates, he asserted.
“It is true that some officials are involved in issuing fitness and survey reports by taking money without inspection. We are active to take action against them,” he added.
The limited capacity of trains will create huge problems for passengers on other routes.
Sylhet-bound passenger Sultan Ahmed complained that he had bought a ticket from Kamalpur railway station after paying an additional Tk. 50. “When I asked why I should pay extra for the ticket, the ticket-seller said it was Eid bonus,” he added.
Many passengers also complained that they were not getting cabin or first class tickets. The ticket counter staff told them that the tickers were reserved for VIPs.
The Bangladesh Railway has taken a number of steps to reduce the suffering of passengers, especially women and children, ahead of Eid. Special steps have been taken to stop black marketing of tickets with the help of police and RAB personnel, who are now working alongside railway law enforcement officials.
The director general of the Bangladesh Railway, Md Abu Taher, said: “A total of 135 coaches are going to be added to the existing locomotives on the occasion of Eid. Of these, 80 at the Pahartoli factory of Chittagong and 55 at the Syedpur factory are ready for service.”
Besides, to ensure hassle-free journey for the passengers, all types of cargo trains will stop running three days before Eid.
Regarding the availability of tickets, Dhaka divisional railway official Sardar Sahadat Ali said: “Around 25,000 tickets will be sold on the occasion of Eid daily.”
About 3,000 buses will carry about 10,000 passengers daily on different routes of the southern part of the country during Eid. The BRTC will operate about 300 buses on the same route.
-With The Independent input
