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Rickshaw ban plan for two roads deferred again

Sultana Rahman
The plan to make Dhaka's two major roads rickshaw-free has been deferred to the first week of November before the Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) summit slated for November 12-
13 in the capital.
The plan which was scheduled to be implemented by the end of August has been stalled temporarily due to the countrywide serial bomb blasts on August 17, sources said.
Dhaka Transport Coordination Board (DTCB) at a board meeting in July decided to make the two roads --
from Elephant Road to Jatiya Press Club and from Shapla Chattar to Ittefaq intersection -- off-limits to rickshaws.
"After the countrywide bomb blasts, this issue has lost its importance to the home ministry. That is why we have to change the plan," a top traffic official said.
Sources said the plan will be tabled at the next meeting of the home ministry which will discuss security issues of the Saarc summit.
Meanwhile, necessary preparations have already been taken to free the two roads from rickshaws and other non-motorised vehicles.
The authorities have no plan to increase the number of buses on these two roads after making them off-limits to rickshaws. At present, some 3,000 buses, minibuses and human hauliers are operated on these roads.
"The plan will benefit people as it will reduce traffic congestion," the traffic official said.
The commuters support the plan but most of them complain about the poor condition of buses and inadequate number of CNG autorickshaws and taxi cabs. "The public buses are not comfortable. Most of them are worn out," said a regular passenger.
Leaders of Bangladesh Rickshaw-Van Malik-Sramik Sangram Parishad have expressed concern over the rickshaw ban. They said the government is imposing such ban without arranging alternative work for the rickshaw-pullers.
It is believed that some four lakh rickshaws ply in Dhaka, although 79,616 are officially registered. But the rickshaw-ban move has become a delicate issue as both the DCC and the communications ministry are reportedly hesitant to implement the plan which may reduce the popularity of the ruling party.
The DCC has a plan to ban rickshaws from three other major roads shortly. Theses are Progati Sarani to Mouchak, Bangla Motor to Mouchak and Rokeya Sarani to Farm Gate.