People in Dhaka queue up for long hours to buy bus tickets before Eid-ul-Fitr holidays

Advanced booking and sale of bus tickets has begun ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr amidst familiar allegations of mismanagement, delay in sale, and the charging of extra fare.

Long queues of people planning to travel to the southern and northern districts during the Eid holidays were seen in Dhaka’s Gabtoli Bus Terminal, which faces the maximum rush for tickets each year. 
 
The ticket sale simultaneously began at the bus counters at Gabtoli, Kalyanpur, Shyamoli and the Mirpur Mazar Road on Monday morning, the first day of the sale.
 

But a resident of Uttara, Iqbal Hossain, of Dinajpur, told bdnews24.com that he had been standing at the Hanif Paribahan counter at Kalyanpur from 5am until 10:15am, but failed to get any tickets.

BRAC University student ‘Imrose’, who plans to go to his village home in Naogaon ahead of the Eid, said he got tickets after an almost three-hour wait at the TR Paribahan counter.

Counter Manager Motahar Hossain admitted the delay in sale. “We started late, as our staff arrived in late.”

Rajshahi’s Shamimul Hasan alleged that TR Paribahan was charging Tk 560 for a ticket instead of the regular fare, which is Tk 450-Tk 500.

Hossain rejected the accusation, saying they were charging the fare fixed by the BRTA.

Many, however, were seen returning home happy after getting the tickets they sought after a long wait.

Meanwhile, the scene was somewhat the opposite at Sayedabad Bus Terminal. People were seen getting the tickets easily.
 
Shyamoli Paribahan’s Counter Manager Md Selim said they were not selling advance tickets. That’s why people were getting tickets whenever they come.
 
“But if anyone wants, advance tickets are available,” he added.
 
Bangladesh has been observing the month of Ramadan since June 7. The Eid, the largest festival of Muslims, is scheduled to be held by the end of first week of July, a date subject to the sighting of the moon.
 
A huge number of people leave Dhaka to celebrate Eid with their families living in their home districts.
 
Advance train tickets for the Eid travel will go on sale from 8am on Wednesday and the holidaymakers would be able to buy them five days in advance.
 
As per the norms so far, a person will be eligible to buy only four tickets.
 
The tickets of Jul 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 would be sold on Jun 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26, respectively.
 
After the Eid, the advance return tickets of Jul 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 would be sold on Jul 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, respectively, at the major railway stations.