A serpentine queue of vehicles has triggered chaos at Paturia ferry ghat in Manikganj.
Since morning, over 300 private vehicles, mostly cars, have been waiting in line at the popular ferry ghat to cross the Padma river ahead of Eid.
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Private cars are stranded in the Tepra area of Dhaka-Aricha highway, 10 kms ahead of Paturia terminal. There's a separate lane at ferry terminal no-5 for these vehicles.
Besides, around 100 buses and 100 trucks are also waiting at the terminal to cross the river, although the movement of all goods-laden trucks will remain suspended for three days ahead of Eid.
These trucks have been stranded at the terminal for the last three days and so the authorities are letting these heavy vehicles cross the river, said Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) DGM Shah Md Khaled Newaz.
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“If the pressure of vehicles increases further, more ferries could be pressed into service," said DGM Khaled.
Meanwhile, the authorities concerned of the ferry terminal are struggling a lot to manage the huge rush of home-bound people as 19 ferries of 21 ferries are currently operating on the Paturia-Daulatdia route.