THE Bangladesh Railway has not been able to provide satisfactory services because of its inefficiency and negligence. It inefficiency was evident on October 25, when thousands of passengers had to wait for hours at the Kamalapur railway station after the derailed compartments of an intercity train had damaged the signalling system. Train communication between Dhaka and outlying areas stopped immediately after six compartments of the Panchagarh Express had derailed, causing the collapse of the railway鈥檚 automatic signalling system. The collapse of the system eventually delayed all trains from the station and the railway authorities were uncertain when they would be able to restore the system. The failure to promptly repair the signalling system disrupted schedules of more than 40 intercity trains and caused immense sufferings to about 33,000 passengers who travel from Dhaka daily. As the Panchagarh Express was moving at a slow speed when it derailed, there were no reported injuries. It is, however, still an accident that the authorities need to investigate. They should also establish the reasons for the failure to promptly restore the signalling system.
The inefficiency and mismanagement in railway management is a widely reported public concern. In May, the daily operations performance report of the railway said that of 2,016 carriages, 46 per cent are in operation, but their shelf life has expired long ago. The major railways are also in a state of disrepair. There are 28 major projects worth Tk 1,40,109.78 crore under way for the railway development. The projects are, however, slow in implementation. Since 1947, successive governments have invested inadequately in the expansion of the railway infrastructure. It is, therefore, not surprising that the railway has become accident-prone, its resources are depleted and its land is occupied. The erratic train schedule, declining customer care and lopsided investments in the road transport sector have made many stations non-operational. Recurring accidents and the current state of the railway show the government鈥檚 prolonged negligence to the sector. In 2005鈥�2020, 419 people died and more than 2,000 became wounded in 4,914 train accidents. A majority of the accidents took place on unattended level crossings. The railway authorities acknowledge the problem but consider recruiting staff for all level crossings to be economically burdensome for an agency that incurs losses.
Despite its decrepit state, the railway plays an indispensable role in transport and travel. The potential of the railway, therefore, needs to be unlocked through planned investment in railways, signalling, rolling stock, maintenance and human resources. The government should take the initiative to prepare a long-term master plan to guide the overall development of the railway in the foreseeable future. It is high time that the government recognised the importance of the sector and made policy changes, prioritising the sector so that the railway can play its full role.