Home
+
Published : 19 Mar 2026, 12:12 PM
Passengers on two trains headed for northern Bangladesh are facing difficulties amid the overwhelming crowd at Dhaka's Kamalapur Railway Station on the last day of the train schedule for Eid-ul-Fitr.
Despite arriving at the station at 6:30am on Thursday, passengers on the Nilsagar Express bound for Nilphamari’s Chilahati and the Ekota Express bound for Dinajpur remain stuck on the platform.
The delays are due to the Nilsagar Express derailing in Bogura’s Santahar on Wednesday, railway officials say.
They expect the Nilsagar Express will be able to leave Dhaka before noon, but it may take until the afternoon for the Ekota Express to depart.
Kamalapur Station Assistant Commercial Officer Mohammad Aminul Haque told bdnews24.com, "The schedules of two trains have been disrupted due to the Nilsagar Express accident in Santahar. The Nilsagar has already arrived at platform No. 7, and there is some work to be done by attaching three new coaches to it. I hope it will be possible for the train to leave around 11am."
The former station manager of the station said the Dinajpur-bound Ekota Express train will depart around 5pm as it was unable to reach Dhaka yesterday. "It has been announced that it will depart at 4:50pm. I hope it will depart at that time."
As of 10:30am, 15 other trains have left Kamalapur on time, bound for different parts of the country, said Aminul.
Garment worker Veena Akhter, who arrived at Kamalapur from Narayanganj at 6:30am, was distraught waiting for the Nilsagar Express train.
He said, "I left Narayanganj this morning and reached Kamalapur at 6 am. I don't know when the train will leave. My two daughters are waiting at home. When will I be able to go? Who knows what time I will arrive now?"
Another passenger of the Nilsagar train, Raisul Islam, came to the station from Dohar early in the morning with his wife and children on the way to Nilphamari.
Whenever a worker at the station passed by, he would stop and ask them what time the train would depart.
Raisul said, "I heard that it will leave at around 11am, but only Allah knows all. What else can I do, brother? As my child is with me, it is difficult to handle."
To avoid any kind of confusion, garment worker Sulaiman Hossain brought his wife and daughter from Gazipur to Kamalapur early for their trip on the Ekota Express to Dinajpur. They arrived at the station at 6:30am. Now the tired 15-year-old girl is sleeping and resting her head on her father’s shoulder.
Sulaiman’s wife Ambia Bibi was sitting next to him and said, "The girl is tired of sitting. When will the train leave? How long can she sit?"
Tamanna Akhter Noori, another passenger on the Ekota Express, arrived in Kamalapur from Narayanganj around 10am.
She said, "I came a little early, but I don't know when the train will leave. Let's see what happens."
Ekota Express passenger Mosammat Barsha said, "They aren’t even telling us when the train will leave. I don't know what to do. If it leaves in the evening, how will I reach home late at night?"
The Ekota Express was scheduled to leave at 6:50am. Due to the delay, many people were seen spreading bed sheets brought from home and making arrangements for their children to sleep on the platform.
On the last day of the train schedule for the Eid holidays, a total of 45 inter-city trains (including two special Eid trains) and 21 local and mail trains, will depart Kamalapur, said station official Aminul.
"From the morning to 10:30am, 15 trains have left on time. All passengers are being allowed to their platforms after ticket verification. Passenger rush is higher [on Thursday]," he added.
Meanwhile, additional measures have been taken to maintain security and order at the entrance of the station.
Ticket checks are being done at two levels - once at the entrance to Kamalapur Railway Station and once at the entrance to the platforms.
No one is being allowed to enter the station without a ticket.
Several law-enforcing agencies have set up booths at the entrance of the station to ensure that passengers maintain order.
