C T Online Desk: Chaos continued in the transport sector for the second consecutive day on Sunday as people across the country were charged extra fares by transports, especially buses and launches.
Staff of buses on city and long routes continued to charge higher-than-fixed fares, by up to 50 per cent.
Due to fewer buses in operation on the first working day after the fuel price hike, passengers suffered throughout the day while they also had to pay higher to other transports like CNG-run auto-rickshaws, rickshaws and illegal contract-based ridesharing services by motorcycles.
People were seen standing at different points in Dhaka and Chattogram cities for transports while they were also seen getting locked into altercations with the transport workers.
Goods-carrying transport owners, meanwhile, demanded the cancellation of the hikes in fuel oil prices.
Launches, too, charged extra from passengers on all routes while the owners demanded a 100 per cent hike in the fares.
Tank-lorry owners called a 24-hour strike from Sunday morning in 15 districts of Khulna division, demanding a readjustment of transport fares and commissions because of the latest hike in the diesel price.
The government, in a statement late on Friday, revised the prices of fuel oils, raising the prices of petrol, diesel, octane and kerosene by almost 50 per cent.
Following the fuel price hike, the government on Saturday increased the fares of diesel-run buses by 16 per cent to 22 per cent while no new fare charts were issued by the authorities concerned as of 9:00pm on Sunday.
Inter-city and inter-district bus passengers in Dhaka and elsewhere claimed that they had to pay extra fares for not finding any other option.
On the day, the number of buses was fewer for the second consecutive day on almost all routes in the capital.
At the three inter-district bus terminals in the capital — Gabtoli, Mohakhali and Saidabad, bus operators charged higher fares by up to 50 per cent.
At the Gabtoli terminal, a Kotalipara-bound Diganta Paribahan was found charging Tk 600 in place of the earlier faree Tk 400.
Md Moshiur Rahman, who was going to Kotalipara, said, ‘I bought a ticket from Diganta Paribahan bus at Tk 600, which I bought at Tk 400 two weeks ago.’
He also said that he was forced to pay the amount as his mother had to go to their village home.
Diganta Paribahan counter clerk Abdur Rahman said, ‘Earlier, we took Tk 400 but the government-set charge was Tk 530. Now, as the price of diesel has increased to Tk 34 per litre, how can we do without adjusting the fares?’
‘We are taking fares as per the owners associations’ directive,’ he added.
At Mirpur-2, Md Soliaman, a passenger of a Rob Rob Paribahan bus, said that he had to pay Tk 15 in place of Tk 10 for the distance between Mirpur-1 and Mirpur-11.
‘The bus conductors are taking extra Tk 3-4 on the excuse of not having changes from passengers,’ he added.
At Nilkhet, Jamil Hossain, a passenger of a Thikana Paribahan bus said that the conductor was taking Tk 15 as minimum fare while it was Tk 10 earlier.
The bus driver’s assistant, Rafiqul Islam, said, ‘We are seeking Tk 15 as minimum fare and passengers are quarrelling with us. Most of them want to pay Tk 10.’
He, however, said that they increased the fares from Tk 15 to Tk 20, from Tk 20 to Tk 25 and from Tk 25 to Tk 30.
In front of Dhaka City College, Mahbub Rahman, a passenger of a Malancha Transport bus, said, ‘I had to pay Tk 30 for travelling from Mohamamdpur to Gulistan. Earlier, I had pay Tk 20.’
Passengers were seen standing on roads at all busy bus stops at Azimpur, Nilkhet, Science Laboratory, Asad Gate, Shyamoli, Mohammadpur, Karwan Bazar, Farmgate, and Mirpur Technical, especially during the office hours.
Bangladesh Road Transport Owners Association secretary general Khandaker Enayetullah admitted that irregularities took place at some places.
Asked about charging higher fares at the Gabtoli terminal, he replied that, ‘The government has set the fare for 52-seater buses but many buses have 40 seats. If people travel in 40-seaters they have to pay the fare in light of 52-seater bus fares.’
A Bangladesh Road Transport Authority press release issued on Sunday said that it had realised Tk 2,60,000 in fine under 93 cases in Dhaka and Chattogram conducting 13 mobile courts on charges of irregularities, including charging higher fares, charging extra fares by CNG-run vehicles that used diesel, not having route permits and fitness certificates, route violations, using hydraulic horns.
Besides, it jailed two brokers and dumped two vehicles, the release added.
Taking advantage of the situation, CNG-run auto-rickshaw drivers, rickshaw pullers and motorcyclists also charged higher fares from helpless passengers.
New Age correspondent in Chattogram reported that transport workers in the port city and other places in the district on Sunday charged at least Tk 5 to Tk 10 extra from the passengers.
CNG-run vehicles also charged extra fares while some passengers got locked into altercations with transport workers over extra fares.
A passenger named Aminul Islam Munna told New Age that CNG-run tempos earlier charged Tk 10 for the distance from Bahaddarhat to Amtala at Reaziddinbazar but they charged Tk 15 on Sunday.
Md Mizanur Rahman, a passenger, said that buses charged Tk 45 from Hathazari to New Market in place of the previous Tk 30.
Chattogram Road Transport Workers Federation president Mohammad Musa and Chattogram Metropolitan Transport Owners Group general secretary Belayet Hossain denied the allegations, saying that they were not charging extra fare.
