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Jobs at stake, for Biman

Worried to death, 2 workers leave for KL a week after schedule; 1,000 hajj pilgrims also stuck

Md Fazlur Rahman
Ekhlasur Rahman and Nasir Hossain, two young migrant workers, yesterday left Dhaka with job worries as their departure was delayed by a week due to the flight disorder of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
They had first come to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on September 17 to catch a flight to Malaysia.
While the duo waited at the airport yesterday, about 1,000 hajj pilgrims were stranded in the city as three flights of National Air Services were delayed.
Ekhlasur, 27, and Nasir, 28, came to Bangladesh on a month's vacation after spending four years in Malacca City in Malaysia. They work in the same section of a textile company and share a room in that country.
The duo had told Biman officials that they must catch a flight that day so that they did not face any trouble at their workplace.
“But the officials were not convinced. They first rescheduled our flight to September 18 and then again to September 25 the following day,” Ekhlasur told The Daily Star at the airport.
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He said the officials rescheduled their flight on the excuse that their visa and passports would not expire soon.
As the flight was delayed, they contacted the manager of their company and briefed him about the situation. They told him that their flight was delayed as Biman had employed all its flights for carrying hajj pilgrims.
“The manager said the company cannot do anything beyond the rules,” said Nasir, adding, “Even if we don't lose our jobs, they will not pay us the salary and allowance for the week lost.”
Ekhlasur looked quite sure about facing trouble when they returned to the factory. “If we lose our jobs, we will become illegal workers and may not be able to stay in that country.”
Ekhlasur, ofKhalishpur in Khulna, and Nasir, of Matlab in Chandpur, had to go back to their home towns on September 18, when their flight was rescheduled for the second time. This caused them additional transport expenses.
They said they had to spend the night of September 17 in the open on
the airport premises.
In case of losing jobs, Ekhlasur, who got married last month, will comparatively be more affected since he also fends for his parents and three school-going siblings.
He said it might have been convenient if Biman could provide papers mentioning the reason for their late return. “I would have been able to show the document at my workplace. But Biman officials said they cannot provide such documents.”
Ekhlasur and Nasir are the two latest victims of the flight disorder caused by Biman's decision to carry more hajj pilgrims than it can afford. As a result, the state-run airliner has suspended all its domestic flights and employed the aircraft on international routes.
Since the flight chaos began on September 10, around 5,000 passengers have had to change their travel plans.
Many passengers said their flight schedule had been deferred by as many as five times stretching over several days. Many who do not have relatives in the
capital were seen waiting at the entry of the airport for several days as they could not afford hotels and had to take extra trouble of feeding themselves.
In contravention of international practice, they were not provided with food and accommodation, which caused them extra expense.
Cousins Main Uddin and Kawser Hossain, who have been working at a hotel in Riyadh for the last four years, have also got caught up in the flight chaos.
They said they needed to reach Saudi Arabia by September 27, before their visa expired.
"We have to complete some documentation in Riyadh," said Main, adding that they, like many others, had spent a night at the entry of the airport.
The suspension of domestic operations is also taking a toll on many passengers.
An elderly passenger said he had planned to board his flight from Sylhet, but could not do so as the airliner had cancelled its domestic operations.
As a result, the Jeddah-bound passenger had to come to the airport in the
capital on personal arrangements.
PILGRIMS' PLIGHT
Mohammad Jamal Uddin, president of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB), said the private Saudi Arabian airline did not operate three flights since Monday night, leaving over 1,000 hajj pilgrims stranded.
He said he had contacted National Air Services, which said the problem would be resolved by last night. However, no flights of NAS Air arrived at the airport as of 11:00pm yesterday.
Jamal quoted an NAS Air official saying the pilgrims have been kept at several hotels in the capital.
The Daily Star could not reach any official of NAS Air for comments.
NAS Air is one of three airlines officially appointed by Bangladesh to carry hajj pilgrims. The airline will carry about 16,000 people forhajj.
The Saudi national carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines will ferry about 40,000 pilgrims while state-run Biman Bangladesh will carry 56,500 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia as Bangladesh plans to ferry 1,12,568 Bangladeshi pilgrims this year.