United News of Bangladesh

Road Transport and Bridges, Shipping and Railways Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam on Tuesday said the government has taken initiative to expand rail connectivity to 10 more districts. The minister said this at a press briefing held at the Press Information Department (PID) conference room at Secretariat following a review meeting on railway development and connectivity chaired by the Prime Minister. The minister said the meeting reviewed the current state of railway services, overall connectivity, ongoing development projects and future expansion plans.“The Prime Minister reviewed the latest activities of the Railways Ministry, assessed the quality of services and connectivity, and provided his observations. Following the review, several important decisions were taken to improve connectivity and railway services across the country,” he said. He said several major railway projects including Akhaura-Sylhet and Sirajganj-Bogura rail links are already progressing. The government has also approved a project to establish an Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Dhirashram while steps are being taken to improve railway infrastructure on Dhaka-Chattogram route, he said. The existing metre-gauge sections between Tongi and Akhaura and between Laksham and Sylhet will be upgraded to dual-gauge double-track lines to remove existing connectivity gaps, he added. Currently, 49 districts of the country are connected to the railway network, he said, adding that the government’s election manifesto pledged to bring all 64 districts under rail connectivity. “To achieve that goal, we have presented possible routes and expansion plans to extend rail services to 10 more districts that currently lack adequate railway connectivity,” he said. The minister said discussions also focused on introducing and expanding commuter train services in areas surrounding Dhaka to ease travel for workers and businesspeople. Citing Manikganj as an example, he noted that the district, despite being located close to the capital, still lacks rail connectivity. “We have plans to establish commuter rail services linking Dhaka with nearby districts, including Manikganj and Narsingdi, similar to existing services on the Dhaka-Narayanganj and Dhaka-Tongi-Joydebpur routes,” he said. The proposed expansion would enable residents of surrounding districts to travel to and from Dhaka more quickly for work, business and other daily activities, he added.

The entire Bangladesh would be brought under the rail network by constructing new railways, Railways Minister Md Zillul Hakim said on Thursday. "Railways will be made a safer mode of transport by improving the quality of service," the minister was speaking at a reception organised by Pangsha-Baliakandi and Kalukhali madrasa teachers-employees of Rajbari at Pansha George Government High School ground. No mechanism yet to take action against misinformation from abroad: Mohammad Arafat   The Ministry of Railways will take strict action against black marketers of train tickets. Law enforcers have already arrested several members of this gang and it will continue. There will be no problem in getting the train tickets for the upcoming Eid trip, everyone will get the tickets easily. 'Sahaja'.com, railway employees and some unscrupulous officials are involved in the black market of train tickets, the minister said. Nasrul Hamid trashes demand for removing electricity-run autorickshaws from streets He said that railways were destroyed during the BNP's regime. Now, the BNP wants to destroy the railway system by setting fire to coaches. The authority concerned has been directed to improve the quality of food for the passengers on the train, added the minister. No narcotic substances found in energy drinks: Industries Minister  Among others, Zilla Parishad Chairman Shafiqul Morshed Aruj, Pangsha Upazila Parishad Chairman Farid Hasan Odud, Baliakandi Upazila Parishad Abul Kalam Azad, Pangsha Upazila Awami League President Khondkar Saiful Islam Buro were present.

Rail communication between Sylhet and other parts of the country resumed Sunday afternoon after nearly 24 hours as floodwater started to recede in some areas. Sardar Shahadat Ali, additional Director General (Operation) of Bangladesh Railway, said the railway authorities resumed the train services Sunday afternoon. The rail link with Sylhet was suspended Saturday afternoon due to the worsening flood situation. Read: Rail communication with Sylhet snapped amid flood Sylhet railway authorities made the announcement of suspending train services around 12:55 pm. “As floodwater entered the railway station rail communication has been suspended,” said Nurul Islam, manager of Sylhet Railway Station. Flood situation in Sylhet started turning into a terrible disaster from Thursday afternoon as almost all the upazilas and municipal area went under water. 

The government has decided to keep passenger train services between Rajshahi and other parts of the country suspended from Friday in the wake of the increased detection rate of Covid-19 infection in the frontier districts. The suspension of services will be effective until midnight past June 17, Mohammad Shafiqur Rahman, director (public relations) of Bangladesh Railway, said Thursday. Bangladesh Railway came up with the announcement as the local administration has imposed an all-out lockdown in the Rajshahi city for a week, starting 5pm Friday, amid a spike in Covid-19 infections there. Also read: Train services to resume at half capacity from Monday No vehicle will be allowed into Rajshahi city and transports cannot leave the area. However, emergency vehicles are exempt from the lockdown. Rajshahi division confirmed 815 daily cases – the highest in the country — in the past 24 hours until Thursday morning. Eight people died from Covid-19 there during the same period, according to the Directorate General of Health Services. Also read: Passenger train services to remain suspended during lockdown: Minister On May 24, regular train services across the country were resumed after suspension of over a month as part of the government restrictions on people's movement to curb coronavirus transmission. However, the authorities were asked to keep 50% of seats vacant for ensuring social distancing. On April 5, passenger train services were suspended across the country as part of a countrywide lockdown – imposed to tackle the second wave of infection.