Extreme chaos and misery have been created around the Eid journey on intercity trains from Dhaka to North Bengal. Hours of delays due to schedule violations, overloaded coaches, shortage of seats for ticket holders, and an unsafe environment – all of this has turned the journey of people heading home into a difficult ordeal.
Monitoring the situation of Kamalapur Railway Station and related train services in the capital over the past four days has shown that most of the intercity trains heading to the northern region have not been running on time. Bangladesh Railway has claimed to be running extra coaches and special trains on the occasion of Eid, but in reality, passengers complain that there has been no visible improvement in service.
Continuous delays for four days
On the first day of the Eid journey, May 23, seven out of nine intercity trains that left Dhaka by 10 am left with delays ranging from 15 minutes to almost two hours. The Nilsagar Express left at 7:30 am instead of 6:45 am. The Teesta Express also started its journey 40 minutes after the scheduled time.
The next day, on 24 May, the Burimari Express left Dhaka more than two and a half hours late, affecting the schedules of other trains as well. The Panchagarh Express started its journey late at night on a delayed schedule.
On May 25, several trains including Dhumketu Express, Nilsagar Express and Rangpur Express left with long delays. On the same day, Ekta Express did not reach the platform even after the scheduled time. At night, Panchagarh Express left Dhaka with a delay of about four hours.
The situation did not improve on May 26. Both the Nilsagar and Ekta Express started their journey much later than scheduled.
Even after buying a ticket, there is no peace of mind in travelling.
Passengers have complained that even after buying tickets with the prescribed fare, VAT and service charge, they are not getting the minimum comfortable environment in reality. Most coaches are carrying more passengers than their capacity. There have been complaints that even air-conditioned (AC) and sleeper coaches are carrying passengers standing up.
On Tuesday, a female passenger on the ‘D’ coach of a Rajshahi-bound train at the airport station entered the train through the window after being unable to get on through the door. She complained in a tearful voice that no one helped her despite having a valid ticket.
Nuruddin Taslim, a regular train passenger and resident of Panchagarh, said that the people of the northern region have long demanded improved rail connectivity. Although that demand has been met, there is now deep disappointment with the quality of service. He said that the journey, which used to be 12 to 13 hours, often turns into 18 to 20 hours. Excess passengers, inadequate washroom facilities and schedule disruptions are adding to the suffering of the passengers.
He further alleged that many passengers do not get the desired service even after buying tickets at an increased price during Eid. There are also allegations of passengers without tickets being charged extra money to be made to stand in the coach.