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Trapped by rickshaws

2 hurt as train rams a car at rail-crossing

Shaheen Mollah and Jamil Mahmud
The black sport utility vehicle was stuck right in the middle of Khilgaon level crossing. A crazy mass of rickshaws blocked its way forward and back. And then the SUV driver saw the danger ahead - a train was approaching.
The gateman rang the siren and brought down the bars on both sides of the crossing. But he then pulled up the bar on one side to allow the SUV to pass.
Several people there tried to clear the rail track. But their efforts went in vain as hundreds of rickshaws and vehicles created a long tailback making it impossible for the SUV to move.
"The speeding train hit the vehicle and mangled it along with three to four rickshaws. It all happened in a couple of minutes," said fruit vendor Abdul Ahad, who saw the incident from his makeshift shop near the crossing.
Witnesses said SUV driver Mohammad Kalam, who was heading towards Shahjahanpur from Khilgaon, was trying to cross the rail track, ignoring the red signal.
Kalam was wounded critically, while a rickshaw-puller suffered minor injuries in the accident that happened around 10:30am.
This is just one of many such accidents in recent times. Impatience and recklessness of drivers, commuters and pedestrians have turned level crossings in the capital and elsewhere virtual
death traps.
Barely two weeks back, four people were killed in a makeshift fish market set up illegally on rail lines at Karwan Bazar, as they jumped on to the path of an express train to avoid being run over by another train. Five others were seriously injured.
After the incident, the railway authorities demolished around 2,500 illegal structures there and tried to create awareness among people. But it failed to yield much result.
In a span of less than three hours on
April 8, three persons, including a minor boy, were killed in separate incidents after they were hit by trains on rail track at Malibagh and Karwan Bazar.
Only about an hour after yesterday's accident a mother and son risked their lives to cross the same rail track with a speeding train just yards away. This reflects the lack of awareness among people about traffic rules and the extent of recklessness that might even cost them their lives.
Gatemen are responsible for controlling traffic near level crossings but
people hardly listen to them, said a high-official of the railway police, wishing anonymity.
Nurunnabi Kabir, divisional estate officer of the railway, said of the 18 level crossings in the capital, 11 are controlled by the railway authorities.
"Tailbacks can be seen at almost all crossings in the city," he told The Daily Star over the phone.
The official urged people to be cautious and follow the signal while crossing a rail line.
Locals said rickshaw-pullers and
drivers of human haulers often stop vehicles abruptly near the Khilgaon crossing to pick up and drop passengers, blocking other vehicles' movement.
On condition of anonymity, one of the gatemen at the crossing said drivers and pedestrians frequently ignore traffic signal and try to cross the rail line at the last moment when a train approaches. "Locals often help clear the rail line."
Fifteen gatemen work at the level crossing in three shifts a day, he added.
Vendor Ahad said scores of vehicles
get stuck in long gridlock almost every day at Khilgaon level crossing. It occurs more during busy hours in the morning and afternoon.
The train, Chittagong Mail, which hit the SUV, was heading for the port city from Kamalapur station, nearly a kilometre from the scene.
Police said the SUV is owned by a member of the national football team.
Abdul Majid, officer-in-charge of Dhaka Railway Police Station, said SUV driver Kalam was admitted to a clinic.