Port city residents have gradually started leaving Chattogram to share the joy of Eid with their loved ones.
Although Eid travel by train has begun with advance tickets, the crowd of homebound passengers at Chattogram Railway Station remained relatively light on the second day as public and private holidays have not yet started.
The Eid journey for passengers holding advance tickets began at 4:20am on Friday, 13 March.
A visit to Chattogram Railway Station on Saturday showed passenger numbers similar to a normal day, with no major Eid rush yet.
Meanwhile, the sale of advance return tickets for post-Eid travel also began on Friday. Tickets for return journeys on 24 March were sold on Saturday.
For the convenience of passengers, Bangladesh Railway is once again selling 100 per cent of tickets online this year.
Extra law enforcement personnel have been deployed in the Chattogram Railway Station area for Eid travel.
Passengers are being allowed onto the platforms only after passing through a three-stage ticket verification process.
Sabbir Hossain, a passenger on the Meghna Express, which left Chattogram at 5pm, said he was a student of the 2020-21 session in the Marketing department at the University of Chittagong. “Classes will resume soon after Eid, so I am going home a little early so that I can return quickly afterwards,” he said, adding that he had bought his ticket about nine days earlier.
Belal Hossain, on the other hand, has been working on ships in Chattogram for the past 12 years. He said he would travel by Meghna Express to Chandpur and then take a launch to Barishal. “I took leave a few days ago, so I set off for home early,” he said.
Station Master of Chattogram Railway Station Palash Dey said everything was normal. “The railway is prepared to serve passengers. Pressure is still low as the holidays have not yet begun. Passenger numbers may increase from 16 March,” he said.
Railway officials said trains had been leaving for different destinations one after another since dawn. The first journey of the day began at 4:20am, when the Parjatak Express left for Cox’s Bazar. It was followed by the Saikat Express for the same destination at 5:40am.
The Chattala Express and Subarna Express left for Dhaka at 6am and 7am respectively. The Paharika Express departed for Sylhet at 7:40am. The Bijoy Express for Mymensingh left at 9:15am, and the Karnaphuli Express departed for Dhaka at 9:55am.
In addition, the Parjatak Express arriving from Dhaka left for Cox’s Bazar at 11:40am.
Bangladesh Railway began selling advance tickets for Eid passengers on 3 March, and the sales continued until 9 March. During that period, advance tickets for seven days were sold. Tickets for travel on 13 March were sold on 3 March, while tickets for travel on 19 March were sold on the final day, 9 March.
According to the railway’s decision, tickets for 23 March were sold on 13 March, tickets for 24 March on 14 March, tickets for 25 March on 15 March, tickets for 26 March on 16 March, tickets for 27 March on 17 March, tickets for 28 March on 18 March, and tickets for 29 March will be sold on 19 March. Tickets for 20, 21 and 22 March will be sold later, subject to the sighting of the moon.
For passengers’ convenience, 25 per cent of standing tickets in non-air-conditioned coaches will be available from the originating station before departure. Each passenger will be allowed to buy a maximum of four advance Eid tickets at a time, and these tickets will be non-refundable.
