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Eid passengers at mercy of brokers

Launch cabins available at double fare; bus, train tickets scarce

Shariful Islam, Suranjit DEBNATH and ASHIQUR RAHMAN
Thousands of people eager to join their near and dear ones away from the capital at Eid are now at the mercy of black marketeers who are allegedly holding a large chunk of tickets of inter-district launches, buses and trains for the next few days.
At Gabtoli bus terminal, bus counters at Kalabagan, Shyamoly and Kalyanpur, Kamalapur Railway Station and Sadarghat launch terminal yesterday many people were found disgruntled and angry failing to book seats for their journey home. And those who could procure tickets had to pay much higher than the normal fare.
Sources said a group of black marketeers in connivance with launch crews have booked most of the cabins until the Eid Day. There are no cabin tickets to be found at the ticket counters. But one can buy them from certain launch crews who are selling a single-berth cabin ticket for Tk 700 to Tk 1,200 and a double-berth one for Tk 1,700 to Tk 2,200 for a Dhaka-Barisal trip, depending on the quality of launch service, alleged some of the victims.
The fare of a Dhaka-Barisal single-berth launch cabin ranges from Tk 400 to Tk 600 and a doubleberth fromTk650 toTk 1,000.
When The Daily Star correspondent yesterday asked for a doubleberth cabin ticket at the ticket counters of some Dhaka-Barisal launch services for November 11 or 13, the staffers said no ticket is available.
After a short negotiation, Sumon, the ticket clerk of Parabat2, a Dhaka-Barisal launch, directed this correspondent to a black marketeer who demanded Tk 2,000 for a doubleberth cabin andTk 1,000 fora singleberth one.
During yesterday’s visit to Sadarghat launch terminal the ticket clerks were also found to be charging almost double the normal fare from the deck passengers.
A number of passengers said if the government does not take corrective measures, the launch crews would charge many times higher than the normal fare during the couple of days immediately before the Eid.
AT BUS COUNTERS
Staff of most ot the passenger bus services said all tickets from November 9 to November 13 have been sold out. Many passengers however alleged transport workers have hoarded most of the tickets and would charge almost double the fare as the passengers would have no alternative to buying them at any price.
Contrary to the claim by most of the bus staffers that they are not charging more than the usual fare, a number of passengers toldThe Daily Star transport workers are charging Tk50toTk60 more a ticket
Though the Hanif Paribahan staffs told The Daily Star correspondent that there were not a single ticket left for November 11 for Rangpur, moments later astaff at the counter sold a ticket to a construction contractor at Tk 250, which is Tk 50 more than the normal fare.
"We are charging Tk 250 per ticket for Rangpur at the directive of our owner,” said Mohammad Dulal, counter master of Hanif Paribahan atShyamoly.
Alauddin Al Azad, general manager of an insurance company, said the staffs of Satkhira Express at its Shyamoly ticket counter charged himTk330 for a ticket for November 13 against the actual fare ofTk260.
To evade any legal consequences, he said, the bus services are writing the authorised fare on the tickets.
"The transport workers and owners are really forcing us to pay higher, taking advantage of the lack of government monitoring,” Azad remarked.
RAILWAY
A large crowd was queued up yesterday morning in front of the ticket counters at Kamalapur Railway Station well ahead of their opening to buy advance tickets. But many of them would be returning empty-handed.
"I came here at 7:00am. After waiting for over five and a half hours in a long queue I managed to buy a ticket of Parabat, a Sylhet-bound express train,” Rahim Mian said.
Ashraf Hossain, however, is not as fortunate as Rahim. ”1 don’t know whether I will be able to go home in Noakhali as I could not get a ticket standing in queues here for the last two days," said Ashraf in visible anger.
During the visit to the railway station yesterday The Daily Star correspondent found a beefed up security at the station, with a mobile court, Government Railway Police, Bangladesh Rifles and police contingents deployed to check any unwanted situation. Members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) were also patrolling the station frequently.
"Apparently no irregularity is taking place. But from my experience I can say that brokers have already grabbed a good number of tickets, which they would sell at much higher rates just before the trains' departure," said TUshar, a Sylhet-bound passenger.
"The homebound passengers have repeatedly complained of not getting tickets. But they have not yet complained of any irregularity,” said the magistrate of the mobile court on duty at the station.