DINAJPUR, Mar 26: The Eid-ul-Fitr holiday has ended, and the Independence Day holiday will conclude on Thursday. With Friday and Saturday being weekly holidays, offices will reopen on Sunday.
Consequently, working people have begun returning to Dhaka. Unable to secure bus or train tickets in Dinajpur, workers are travelling to Dhaka perched on the roofs of trains, which are blisteringly hot under the intense sun.
Many passengers, unable to endure the heat inside the carriages due to overcrowding, find the train roof more comfortable.
The Panchagarh Express, which departs from Panchagarh, enters Dinajpur station daily at 2:20 pm. After a 15-minute halt, it left Dinajpur station at 2:35 pm bound for Dhaka.
On Thursday, there was an overwhelming rush. With the number of passengers double the seating capacity, travellers were forced to travel on the train roof despite the blazing sun.
Speaking to passengers, it was learnt that many boarded the roof because they could not get tickets. Others, who had standing tickets, climbed onto the roof unable to bear the heat and congestion inside. Some could not even board the carriages due to the crowd and resorted to the roof. They stated there was no alternative, as they must report to work by Sunday.
Even before the Panchagarh Express arrived in Dinajpur from Panchagarh via Thakurgaon, there was no space left on the roof. Officials stated that by the time the train reaches Kamalapur, there will not be an inch of room free on the roof either. They added that they are unable to stop passengers from travelling on the roofs despite their efforts.
Passengers travelled on the roofs of the Ekta Express train late on Wednesday night and the Drutajan Express train on Thursday morning.
Milon Rahman and Saju, who travelled from Panchagarh and Thakurgaon on the train roof, said there had been intense heat for the past two days. The roof was so hot in the sun that one could fry bread on it. They would have to remain on the roof for 11 to 12 hours. They might get some relief at night. They set off trusting in God.
Abdus Samad boarded the roof at Dinajpur station. He said that despite having a ticket, he climbed onto the roof because he could not tolerate the crowd and heat inside the carriage. Moreover, he has a tendency to vomit during travel. He therefore considered the roof safer.
ABM Ziaur Rahman, Station Master of Dinajpur, said the government had given a long holiday for Eid so that people could travel calmly and comfortably. However, people are returning as soon as the holiday ends.
The pressure is increasing at the tail end. Even adding extra carriages has not helped manage the rush. Yet, trains ran empty for several days after Eid. He expressed astonishment thinking about how people would travel to Dhaka on train roofs in this extreme heat. Trains are carrying double the number of passengers than the seating capacity.
