Ferry service on the Aricha-Kazirhat route on the Jamuna River has been hampered due to the shortage of ferries.
Passengers from the districts – Dhaka, Manikganj, Pabna, Sirajganj, Kushtia, Chuadanga, Meherpur, Magura, Jhenaidah, Chapainawabganj, Rajshahi and Bogura – usually travel via Aricha ghat to Manikganj and Kazirhat to Pabna.
Bangabandhu Bridge and Dhaka-Tangail highway vehicles use the Aricha-Kazirhat waterway to avoid traffic jams on the road.
Sources from the Aricha regional office of the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) said three ferries are currently operating on the waterway. The ferries are old, so it takes more than two hours to cross the river, reports our correspondent from Manikganj.
The Ranikhet ferry was out of service yesterday (April 26, 2022) due to engine issues. But now it is driving on the road, the sources said.
Before Eid-ul-Fitr, the pressure of vehicles has increased on the road.
About 350 vehicles, including trucks, passenger cars and microbuses, cross the river every day. Commuters often face hardship due to the shortage of ferries on the route.
Mahtab Pramanik, a truck driver from Pabna, said, “I arrived at Aricha Ghat at 2:15 a.m. on Monday. I was unable to catch the ferry at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. I don’t know when I will be able to.”
“More than 100 trucks are stuck at Aricha ghat,” he said.
BIWTC Deputy Director General (Marine), Abdus Sattar, said there were three ferries on the route. Currently two are running and another will be operational soon.
“We planned to take a ferry from Paturia ghat to ease the traffic jams,” he said.
He added: “There is a shortage of ferries on all the waterways of the country. We are not over the limits. If there is a problem somewhere, we try to solve it by bringing a ferry by the way. Hopefully we can resolve this issue.”
