Trains are being run on a rationing system as only one line is operational, Joydebpur Station Master Md Hanif Mia says
Published : 04 May 2024, 02:08 PM
The schedule of trains running between Dhaka and northern Bangladesh has been seriously disrupted by the collision of two trains in Gazipur’s Joydebpur, causing severe suffering to passengers.
A Dhaka-bound Tangail commuter train collided head-on with a freight train carrying oil to the north of Bangladesh near the Joydebpur Railway Junction around 10:50am on Friday.
Services resumed on the neighbouring route several hours after the accident, but train operations have yet to return to normal due to repair work, said Joydebpur Stationmaster Md Hanif Mia.
Meanwhile, hundreds of passengers from various districts were seen waiting for hours at Joydebpur junction to reach their destinations early on Saturday.
Tonmoy, a student of the Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology in Gazipur, was waiting for a Rajshahi-bound train at the station platform.
“I will travel to Rajshahi with a friend,” he said. “We have been waiting for the train at the station since 6:45am but the train has not arrived as of 10am.”
Rony was waiting with his family for a Jamalpur-bound Teesta train at the Joydebpur junction. The merchandiser said he had endured great trouble with his family as the Teesta Express train, which is supposed to leave the station at 7:30am, had not arrived as of 10am.
Md Rafiqul Islam, signal inspector at Joydebpur Railway Junction, said the train schedule has been disorderly since the incident. The delays are due to trains travelling in both directions using a single line.
The Mymensingh-bound Balaka left the junction via the up line while the Dhaka-bound Burimari Express passed through the down line as of 9:30am on Saturday, he said.
Station Master Hanif said trains are being run on a rationing system as only one line is operational. The authorities are allowing a single train to use the line at a time while keeping the rest waiting in the neighbouring Dhirasram and Joydebpur stations.
Five carriages of the Tangail commuter train were damaged and ten carriages of both trains, including the engines, derailed in Friday’s accident. The rescue efforts began from 3:30pm on Friday and were not completed until 11am on Saturday.
A total of eight train carriages, including the engines, have been recovered as of 11am on Saturday. Efforts are underway to recover the remaining two, which might take another two and a half hours, Hanif added.