Many people, who failed to buy advance train tickets the previous day, swarmed the Kamalapur railway station in the capital on Monday to manage tickets for their journey before and after the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr.
Many of them, however, blamed mismanagement for their sufferings standing in long queues for hours.
The Bangladesh Railway started selling advance tickets for Eid on Sunday at Dhaka and Chittagong stations from 9:00am to 5:00pm.
The tickets for travelling on August 14 were available on August 5 (Sunday), August 15’s on August 6, August 16’s on August 7, August 17’s on August 8 and August 18’s on August 9.
Tickets for Chittagong-bound Turna-Nishitha, Chattala Express, Suborna Express, Mahanagar Godhuli and Mahanagar Prabhati, Dinajpur-bound Nilsagar, Ekota and Rangpur Express, Rajshahi-bound Padma Express, Dhumketu and Silkcity and Jamalpur-bound Egarosinghur, Agnibina and Jamuna expresses were sold on Monday.
Mohammad Asaduzzaman, a Dinajpur resident, said he had been standing in the queue since Sunday 8:00pm.
‘I did not get any advance ticket for Dinajpur yesterday,’ he said and added that they were maintaining the queue on their own as there was no security guard.
Rana, a Nilphamari resident who also did not get ticket on Sunday, said he was waiting for tickets from Sunday 10:00pm.
‘I came here at 9:00pm yesterday and still my serial number is 125 today. How is it possible?’ asked Nurul Islam Maruf, who was a Jamalpur resident.
Mahfizul Islam, a Chittagong resident, said he had come to the station at 3:00am on Monday but he was yet to manage the ticket even at noon.
‘The process of selling the tickets is very slow,’ he added.
Smriti Das, another Chittagong resident, said she could not manage tickets for Chittagong-bound Turna Nishitha and Shuborna Express at the women counter.
Kishoreganj resident Mabia Sultana said she had left her children at home at 6:00am to come to the railway station but was still waiting for the ticket.
Tangail-bound Shikha Das, who brought her children to the queue, said there should be two lines for women.
‘The authorities should increase manpower at the station on the occasion of Eid to ease our sufferings,’ she added.
The Kamalapur railway station manager, Mohammad Khairul Bashir, told New Age that he would take action against anything illegal at the station.
Representatives of law enforcing agencies like Rapid Action Battalion and our own security force are on guards at the station.
The RAB men on the day detained two people at the station for black marketing the tickets.
-With New Age input
