Once a vital artery connecting to the Grand Trunk Road built by Mughal Emperor Sher Shah Suri, the Hemayetpur-Singair-Manikganj regional highway now stands as a glaring example of infrastructural failure.
What was once a symbol of historic importance has, over time, become a deadly trap for locals.
The road, only 24 feet wide, lacks adequate dividers or pedestrian pathways, yet it sees a daily influx of buses, trucks, brick kiln vehicles, auto-rickshaws, and speeding cars.
The result of poor urban planning, mismanagement, and uncontrolled traffic, the road has become a major safety hazard.
Despite an allocation of Tk250 crore by the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) for widening and improving the road several years ago, the road remains narrow and constrained to two lanes with no divider or pedestrian areas, further escalating safety risks.
Additionally, the heavy traffic moving to and from the Paturia ferry terminal has added to the already congested road.
The highway has become notorious for fatal accidents, with traffic-related fatalities rising year after year. In 2025, the road recorded over 100 accidents, breaking all previous records and resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.
A tragic head-on collision occurred on 8 January 2024 at 7:30am in the Rishi Para area of Hemayetpur-Singair Road. A sand-laden drum truck collided with a CNG auto-rickshaw, claiming the lives of Jasim Talukder (45), his 5-year-old grandson Yasin, and Shahin Molla (42). The tragic incident wiped out two generations of the Talukder family in an instant.
Another deadly incident occurred on 21 August 2024 when a bus collided with a brick-laden truck in the Basta-Binna Dangi area of Dholla Union. At least 12 people were injured, with three later succumbing to their injuries at a hospital in Dhaka.
Previously, on 12 October 2023, Shahidul Islam (35) tragically died after losing control of his motorcycle and falling into a ditch near Jaymondop.
Local journalist Saiful Islam Tanvir frequently reports accidents on this road, highlighting the daily danger it poses. Selim Hossain, a pharmacy owner near the Jaymondop bus stand, emphasised the need to widen the road to four lanes and build pedestrian walkways to ensure public safety.
Rescue operations following accidents have also become increasingly perilous due to the absence of safety measures such as drainage slopes or barriers on the road’s southern side. Rescue teams are often forced to risk their own lives to save accident victims trapped in vehicles that have fallen into ditches.
In addition to these hazards, allegations of land misuse have surfaced. Local residents claim that the district council has leased land on the southern side of the road for large sums of money, violating Roads and Highways Department protocols. This has led to the uncontrolled growth of shops and kiosks that obstruct the road’s visibility, further increasing the likelihood of accidents.
Illegal vehicles, including “hello bikes,” auto-rickshaws, and overloaded trucks, operate freely on the road, contributing to reckless driving. A traffic police officer, speaking anonymously, revealed that the narrowness of the road makes it nearly impossible to regulate heavy vehicle traffic.
Officials from the Roads and Highways Department admitted that the current widening efforts are insufficient to handle the growing traffic load. They emphasised that expanding the road to four lanes is the only viable and permanent solution to address the mounting crisis.
On the issue of disputed land, Manikganj Roads and Highways Department engineer Md Abdul Kader Zilani confirmed that the district council has not addressed their concerns, despite repeated discussions in coordination committee meetings.
Md Mehedi Hasan, the Chief Executive Officer of Manikganj District Council, responded that the district council, being an autonomous body, needs to generate revenue from its land. However, he assured that any illegal transactions would be addressed swiftly.
The road’s strategic importance has long been recognised, and former lawmaker of Manikganj-2, Momtaz Begum, had proposed expanding it to four lanes. Although the proposal reached the Ecnec, no progress has been made as of yet.
Once a symbol of progress and communication, this road now serves as a grim reminder of institutional failure. Local rhyme composer Miyajan aptly summed up the situation with the words: “If you wish to go to hell, drive through the Singair road.”
Residents fear that without immediate intervention, the number of fatalities on this historic road will only continue to rise.
