Rush of home-bound passengers on waterways and railways has increased with the closing of offices and businesses for the Eid-ul-Fitr festival.
Sadarghat launch terminal and Kamalapur Railway Station saw a heavy rush of passengers since Thursday morning, the last working day before the Eid.
Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) Traffic Inspector Syed Mahfuzur Rahman said though the passengers’ rush in Sadarghat had declined ‘a bit’ towardsnoon, it again increased in the afternoon.
He told bdnews24.com that 10 launches had left Sadarghat for different destinations in the two hours since 8am.
Ninety-six vessels had left the terminal on Wednesday.
Marine police Additional Inspector General Md Rafiqul Islam said 120 personnel of the force had been deployed at Sadarghat to ensure security at the launch terminal.
BIWTA Director (Traffic) Md Shariful Haque said security had been beefed up this year.
Twenty-seven closed-circuit cameras have been installed in the terminal area, where a mobile court has also been stationed.
Sadarghat police outpost Sub-Inspector Abdus Salam said there was no news of any accident and no complaint of any problem.
Trouble-free train travel
Kamalapur station Manager Sitangshu Chakrabarty claimed passengers travelled without any trouble, as all trains left on time despite the passenger rush.
He said: “Unlike previous years, there was no need for passengers this time to wait at the station for hours.”
A passenger, Sabuj Mia, waiting at Kamalapur around 11am for a Sirajganj-bound train, said: “My train is supposed to depart at 11:40am… I heard the train will leave the station on time.”
Several passengers, however, said Khulna-bound Sundarban Express and Rangpur-bound Rangpur Express left one hour behind their scheduled time in the morning.
Admitting the delay, Chakrabarty said: “Sundarban Express usually gets delayed by 2-3 hours. The delay has been reduced to one hour.”
He said engine of Rangpur Express had developed a fault, causing the delay.
Source: Bd news24
