Commuters worried as Dhaka-N’ganj train services to remain suspended from Sunday

The regular train passengers on Dhaka-Narayanganj route have become worried over the possible sufferings as the train services, their reliable means of communication, will remain suspended from Sunday.

In a press release issued on Wednesday, the Ministry of Railways said, currently construction of three separate rail lines from Dhaka to Gendaria part is going on under the Padma Bridge rail link project.

To expedite the construction work, train movement on Dhaka-Narayanganj route will remain suspended from December 4, said the release.

The rail authorities didn’t mention when the rail services will resume but some officials told the UNB correspondent that it will take at least three months to complete the work.

The Ministry of Railways has expressed regret for the temporary inconvenience of the passengers.

About 30,000 passengers commute between the two cities by 26 trains that operate daily on the 12.1 km long Dhaka-Narayanganj railway.

After the suspension of train service, the only means of commuting between Naryanganj and Dhaka will be Dhaka-Naryanganj link road where construction and repair work are underway.

“This means more trouble and expenses for daily passengers,” said Raj Razak,  a regular commuter from Narayanganj

“Those who use Dhaka-Naryanganj train service on a regular basis should submit a memorandum to the railway authorities for not suspending the rail operation considering the hassle it will bring for thousands of people.”

Another passenger Md Al Mamun said the authorities could have kept the service open till Pagla or Shyampur from Narayanganj rather than closing the whole route.

The Padma Bridge rail link will be constructed as a 169 km dual-gauge line spending Tk 40,000 crore.

Suman Biswash said, “Most of the commuters used to travel without tickets on this route which cost them Tk 15. Now they will have to travel by bus buying Tk 55 tickets.”

The Dhaka-Narayanganj rail line and the Padma bridge project railway line from Kamalapur station run side by side up to Gendaria. From there, the Padma Rail Link Project will go up to Jessore through Keraniganj, Srinagar in Munshiganj, Mawa, via Bhanga Junction in Faridpur.

Besides, the existing Dhaka-Narayanganj metre-gauge line from Kamalapur to Geraria will be upgraded to dual gauge one spending Tk 600 crore.