It is long overdue for the law to make it mandatory for launch owners to take out insurance policies covering passengers.
Past proposals for compulsory insurance on launches, similar to that required for air, rail and road journeys have been sidelined for many years.
With dozens of capsizes taking place annually, and at least 4,500 people killed in launch accidents over the past four decades, the government needs to take concerted action to improve passenger safety.
One concerning aspect of the lack of compulsory passenger insurance is that capsized vessels themselves are sometimes insured, often at the insistence of banks giving loans to buy boats, but passengers are not covered.
A similar picture exists in relation to payments by the River Welfare Fund formed by the Shipping Department. Monies from this fund are primarily used to compensate owners for lost vessels while the amounts it pays to compensate victims are nominal.
It should be straightforward to turn this picture around, by making it compulsory for launch operators to hold insurance policies for their passengers. Authorities would then simply need to demand evidence of a mandatory insurance policy whenever an owner asks for a launch fitness certificate.
At a stroke this would increase total funds available to compensate victims. More importantly, insurers would naturally be incentivised to ensure vessels are adequately maintained and operated and to pressure authorities to enforce higher standards.
Compulsory passenger insurance would protect the public by forcing all launch operators to improve safety standards.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
