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Attack on Rails During Hartal, Blockade

Train schedule falls apart in western zone
EAM ASADUZZAMAN, Nilphamari
Schedule of trains in West Zone of Bangladesh Railway (BR) virtually collapsed as agitators uprooted rail lines, unscrewed fishplates and arranged gathering on tracks at different places during the countrywide transport blockade enforced by BNP-led 18-party alliance during the last two days.
Thirty intercity and mail trains along with dozens of local trains and two recently introduced Demu trains move on different routes covering 1550 kilometre tracks in West Zone and around three lakh passengers make train journey from about 400 stations there daily, said railway sources.
But operation of two local trains Padmarag and 7up--8down running between Santahar-Lalmonirhat and Santahar-Panchagarh, two Demu trains Rangpur Commuter running between Parboti pu r-Lal m on i rhat and Thakurgaon Commuter running between Parbotipur-Thakurgaon had to be suspended due to the schedule collapse amid the political agitation, they said.
"Most of the trains in this division failed to maintain schedule as rail lines were uprooted in Joypurhat, Jamalganj and several other places, mass human gathering on rail tracks in Dinajpur and other places," said Mir Md Ali Akbar, chief train controller of Pakshi Division in WestZone.
Ekota intercity train running between Dinajpur and Dhaka was scheduled to reach Dinajpur by about 9:00pm on Tuesday but it could not reach there as a 'human shield' was formed on rail tracks as part of the countrywide road blockade by the opposition alliance, said sources of Lalmonirhat Division under West Zone ofBR.
Later it started for Dhaka from Parbotipur instead of Dinajpur and reached the capital making four hours late.
Intercity train Lalmonirhat Express started from Lalmonirhat at 7:10pm although it was scheduled to start at 10:40am and reached the capital 12 hours later than the schedule.
The Nilsagor intercity train running between Saidpur- Dhaka was three hours late to reach the capital.
Intercity train Chitra operating from Khulna to Dhaka was seven hours late and Rangpur express was five hours late to reach destination Dhaka.
During the two-day countrywide blockade programme by the 18-party alliance, the rail stations saw huge rush of passengers as many people who usually travel by bus went there to have a relatively smooth journey but in vain.
"I am frustrated as the train was scheduled to leave the station at 9:20pm on Tuesday but it did not even arrive that day," Emdadul Haque, principal of a
kindergarten, who along with his wife was waiting for Dhaka-bound Ekota express at Dinajpur railway station told this correspondent over cellphone.
Chief train controller of Lalmonirhat Division under West Zone Shahidul Islam said, "Despite seriously efforts, we are facing difficulties to maintain timetable as in many cases trains made late for more hours due to the agitation programme of some political parties."
Railway officers, engineers, locomotive masters, guards and employees of all categories are working hard, even taking life risk, to make railway service smooth, said Mosharaf Hossain, chief traffic manager of BR's West