Ahead of the forthcoming Eid-ul-Azha, the Bangladesh Railway (BR) is taking an extensive preparation in its eastern zone through readying 90 old locomotives to ensure smooth and uninterrupted passenger services on the holy festival occasion, official sources said.
According to the BR sources, in order to address the anticipated holiday rush of the Eid journey, the engines are currently undergoing repair and maintenance at locomotive workshops in the Pahartali and Dhaka divisions under the BR.
Rajendra Prasad Bhowmik, divisional chief power controller of the Pahartali Division, said repair works of the 90 locomotives are currently in progress across the two divisions; of these, 55 locomotives are being repaired at the Pahartali Diesel Workshop, while the remaining 35 are under maintenance in Dhaka.
So far, the maintenance works of 46 engines have already been completed.
He added that the repair work on older locomotives began earlier in preparation for the Eid travel season. On an average, seven to eight engines are being repaired daily at the Pahartali workshop.
Bhowmik also acknowledged a long-standing shortage of skilled manpower at the diesel workshop. Due to the lack of experienced technicians, newly recruited staff are being assigned to repair duties. He further noted a shortage of quality spare parts, which is affecting proper locomotive maintenance.
According to the BR officials, the country's railway fleet currently consists of 297 locomotives-167 meter-gauge and 130 broad-gauge engines. The economic lifespan of a locomotive is about 20 years from the date of commissioning. Around 51 per cent of the locomotives have already exceeded this limit.
At present, only 147 locomotives remain within their economic lifespan. Of the remaining 150, 50 are between 21 and 30 years old, 16 are between 31 and 40 years old, and 84 are over 40 years old.
Md. Mizanur Rahman, chief power controller of the eastern zone, said that around 90 to 95 locomotives will be required daily to maintain normal train operations during Eid-ul-Adha.
"During last year's Eid-ul-Fitr, we managed to deploy 88 locomotives. This time, we aim to operate around 90 to 95 locomotives," he added.
He further noted that although around 100 locomotives are typically required daily for regular operations in the eastern zone, only 78 to 80 are usually available. However, during Eid, freight train services are suspended, allowing additional locomotives to be allocated for passenger transport, he maintained.
