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Unfit buses to return to city streets

DMP returning seized buses to owners as it faces space crisis

Kailash Sarkar
The traffic department of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) is releasing seized unfit buses due to insufficient dumping space in Rajarbagh Police Lines.
The DMP launched a drive on October 17 against buses without fitness certificates and route permits, seized about 500 buses and filed over 3,000 cases in the last four days.
However, DMP had to stop the drive due to shortage of space. The traffic policemen seized over 103 buses yesterday, 230 on Sunday, 108 on Saturday and 59 on Friday.
Sources say over 300 of the buses have already been handed to
the owners after they paid fines and signed bonds that they would not run the unfit vehicles.
Jasim Uddin, joint commissioner (Traffic) of DMP, told The Daily Star, "We are bound to release the buses as we don't have enough dumping space. We had to stop the drive on Friday after seizing 59 buses."
Asked, he said they cannot dump the buses elsewhere as that requires setting up an office to maintain and look after the seized vehicles.
"We're releasing the buses against bonds and commitments of the owners that they would not further ply these vehicles on the city roads," he added.
In reply to a question, Jasim Uddin said, "The bus owners can ply those vehicles outside the city."
The joint commissioner said they would launch a fresh drive from today against the buses violating route permit.
Meanwhile, bus owners have protested against the drive and issued a threat to stop plying their vehicles on the city roads if the drive continues.
They allege the traffic department is carrying out the drive violating an agreement between the government and Bangladesh Sarak Paribahan Malik-Sramik Federation (BSPMSF) signed on October 14.
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They also allege in the name of the drive, the traffic policemen are harassing them.
Following the protests, officials of the traffic department (north) on Sunday held a meeting at Mohakhali bus terminal with the bus owners and employees.
Former lawmaker Shahjahan Khan, joint convener of BSPMSF. told The Daily Star, "The government on October 14 assured us that the traffic police would go for action against only those buses which are over 20 years old."
Osman Ali, executive president of Mohakhali bus terminal, said, "If the traffic police violate the agreement, we would go for movement."