Eid holidaymakers availing of train as mode of transport endured immense sufferings due to unscheduled delays by most of the trains departed from Kamalapur Railway Station to different destinations on Monday.
Huge pressures of homebound passengers and people jostling for a place on trains’ rooftops made the locomotive operators all the more cautious about accidents resulting in slowing down of train speeds during this Eid-ul-Azha season.
During a visit to Kamalapur today, UNB correspondent found most of the trains were running late and leaving the station two to four hours behind their respective scheduled departure times.
Sitangshu Chakraborty, Manager of Kamalapur Railway Station, said 30 trains departed the station for different destinations till 2:30 pm on Monday.
Rajshahi-bound inter-city train ‘Dhumketu Express’ was scheduled to set out on a journey around 6 am but it departed around 9 am.
Besides, the Khulna-bound ‘Sundarban Express’ left the station at 9 am, 2 hours and 40 minutes behind schedule, while ‘Nilsagar Express’ departed around 11:50 am instead of the scheduled time 8 am, he said.
The Rangpur-bound ‘Rangpur Express’ delayed for four hours while Lalmonirhat-bound ‘Lalmoni Express’ train left Kamalapur at 2:45 pm though it was scheduled to leave at 9:15 am, he added.
He also said due to overcrowding all trains had to make 10/15 minutes’ step-over in each stations and getting late in their journeys to and from Kamalapur.
A total of 68 trains are scheduled to depart Kamalapur on Monday, he said.
Contacted, Railways Minister M Mujibul Haque, told UNB on Monday afternoon, “Though some trains left the station a little late but now all the train are departing Kamalapur in schedule time after 4 pm.”
Md Jakir, a passenger, said the Rajshahi-bound ‘Silkcity’ train was scheduled to leave at 2:40pm but it was making long delays. “It is too tiring to wait at the station for three to four hours.”
Besides, a Lalmonirhat-bound train ‘Lalmoni Express’ departed the station around 3 pm instead of 9:15 am.
Mostafizur Rahman, divisional railways officer (Lalmonirhat), said the ‘Lalmoni Express’ train left the station around 2:45 pm but after 15 to 20 minutes it returned to the station due to technical glitch following overcrowding and it again left the station after 3 pm.”
source:UNB
