Commuters suffer due to transport strike on Dhaka-Barisal route

The transport owners' strike on the Dhaka-Barisal route has caused immense suffering to commuters.

The strike began on Monday morning, in protest against, what the transport owners are claiming a disproportionately high compensation fixed for the victims of a recent accident.

A bus of Hanif Enterprise veered off the road killing 12 people and injuring several others on July 11 in Ujirpur, Barisal.

On July 19, following a negotiation, it was decided that the Hanif Enterprise would pay a compensation of Tk 60,000 to the families of the deceased and Tk 25,000 to the injured.

But the Bangladesh Bus-Truck Owners Association in an emergency meeting on Sunday claimed the compensation was 'unfair' and much higher than what the government mandates in such accidents. They called a strike on Monday.

Dhaka district transport workers' association is backing the strike while transport owners, whose vehicles operate on Dhaka-Madaripur route, have also gone on a strike.

Commuters are facing immense problem due to the sudden strike. Many were seen crowding bus counters in Barisal on Monday morning. The heavy downpour frommidnight only added to their woes.

Rustam Jamaddar, a resident of Savar, came to Barisal for some business. He had bought a return ticket from Sakura Paribahan beforehand. But at dawn, on reaching the bus counter, much to his dismay, he found that the transporters were on strike.

"I need to return to Dhaka immediately. If I can't get there by Monday, I'll incur a big financial loss," he said.

Another passenger said he and his family were planning to attend a wedding in Dhaka. Now he will have to rent a car, and as a result, some members of the family will have to be left behind.

Manager of the Hanif Enterprise Abu Taleb Kachi said the company was willing to pay Tk 25,000 to the families of those killed and Tk 8,000 to those injured.

Barisal District Bus Owners Association President Aftab Hossain said he was not aware of the strike.

Local MP Talukdar Md Yunus expressed his anger over the strike.

"They killed 12 people, and now they're causing more suffering to the people. This is unfair," he said.